This is a major scandal.
It has been more than EIGHT MONTHS since the DC appellate court heard oral arguments in the appeal of Couy Griffin's conviction for the most common J6 misdemeanor--knowingly entering restricted grounds/building.
During the hearing on Dec. 4, the 3 judges (Clinton, Obama, Trump) indicated they would send the case back to Judge Trevor McFadden, who found Griffin guilty of 1752(a)(1) in March 2022.
Griffin's attorney asked for either an acquittal on the sole charge or require DOJ to prove to McFadden that Griffin knew the area was restricted (he did not go inside the building) and knew VP Pence was on the grounds, which rendered the area off limits bc he was a Secret Service protectee at the time.
Either way--the panel strongly indicated they believed foreknowledge was a necessary element to demonstrate guilt.
A ruling of that nature would have caused chaos in DC courthouse, potentially impacting hundreds of cases.
But as the panel weighed its decision, something seismic happened: SCOTUS granted cert in Fischer one week later.
Dem-heavy DC appellate court recognized the threat to the J6 prosecution AND narrative if both the most common misdemeanor and most common felony (1512c2) were reversed by higher courts.
Since SCOTUS granted cert, the court held oral arguments in April and posted its decision on June 28.
That entire time, the DC appellate court--an Obama appointee is the chief judge--SAT on releasing its order related to Griffin's appeal and continues to do so. Normal time btw oral arguments and decision is 4-5 months.
Apparently, this is not concerning to the "legal experts" who have accused other courts of slow walking key opinions in other political cases.
You can listen to the discussion :
(post is archived)