Choose denies Steve Bannon's request for brand new trial in contempt of Congress case

Steve Bannon's bid for a brand new trial and dismissal of his contempt of Congress costs was rejected by a decide Friday.

Bannon was discovered responsible of two counts of contempt in July for failing to adjust to subpoenas from the Jan. 6 committee that demanded he flip over paperwork and sit for testimony. Attorneys for Bannon argued in an enchantment that he was unfairly precluded from calling on key witnesses and prevented from leaning on a key protection argument throughout his trial.

STEVE BANNON SAYS HE ISN'T SCARED OF GOING TO JAIL AFTER GUILTY CONVICTION

"Ultimately, defendant provides little to show that the precise testimony be would elicit would have been materials to the problems at trial. That falls in need of his burden," U.S. District Choose Carl Nichols wrote.

Nichols was the identical decide who oversaw the trial towards Bannon earlier this summer time. Throughout his trial, Bannon sought to name on members of the Jan. 6 committee and Home Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) for testimony, however Nichols blocked that.

He additionally prevented Bannon from deploying an advice-of-counsel protection technique — wherein Bannon's attorneys would argue he defied the subpoena on the recommendation of his attorneys and will subsequently be shielded from legal responsibility.

Penalties for contempt costs sometimes embrace between 30 days and one 12 months in jail and as much as a $100,000 superb per cost. Bannon was slapped with two costs, one for failing to seem for testimony and the opposite for refusing to provide paperwork. His trial was the primary contempt of Congress trial since 1983, CNN authorized analyst Elie Honig reported.

Bannon was reportedly smiling when the eight-man, four-woman jury handed down the responsible verdict and his lawyer, David Schoen, argued on the time that Bannon had a "bulletproof enchantment."

The Jan. 6 panel sought testimony from Bannon as a result of he was current in conferences on the Willard Resort "command heart," wherein allies of former President Donald Trump concocted methods to problem the 2020 election. Panel members had been excited about any data he had about efforts to problem the election.

Bannon argued that Trump's assertion of government privilege precluded him from testifying. He was not a member of the Trump administration through the time interval in query. Shortly earlier than his trial started, Bannon supplied to ship testimony to the committee, contending that Trump knowledgeable him through letter that he would waive his government privilege claims.

 A sentencing date has been set for Oct. 21.