WASHINGTON (AP) – The District Attorney for the District of Columbia said Thursday that “all options are on the table” to charge members of the violent pro-Trump mob that stormed the U.S. Capitol – including charges for riot.
Michael Sherwin, DC’s acting U.S. attorney general, said prosecutors plan to file 15 federal cases for crimes on Thursday, including unauthorized access and theft of property, and investigators are looking for evidence to file additional charges.
“All these charges are on the table,” he said. “We are not going to keep anything out of our arsenal for possible charges. We will charge the maximum costs we can incur based on the behavior. ”
Sherwin said 40 other cases have already been filed in the District Court of Columbia District.
More than 90 people have been arrested in Washington and there are likely to be more arrests. U.S. lawyers from across the country have vowed to find and execute residents who took part in the uprising to stem the peaceful transfer of power. But it could take weeks to settle cases against the rioters.
According to experts, the inflammatory conspiracy that is rarely used can be faced. This is the same charge that former Attorney General William Barr’s Justice Department told prosecutors to consider charging against those who caused violence during protests. last summer about the murders of Black Americans by the police.
Other possible charges for the Trump mob include civil disruption, destruction of property and rioting, experts say.
“You could literally throw the book at them, and it would be a pretty heavy book,” said Laurie Levenson, a former federal prosecutor and professor at Loyola Law School. Levenson said it was important for prosecutors to send a message with their charges.
“It can not happen again,” she said. “It was a very narrow moment for America and it can set no precedent that the way you handle political opposition is through violence and destruction.”
The Justice Department aggressively pursued protesters who caused violence during the protests due to police brutality, which charges more than 300 charges of crimes including civil disorder and housebreaking. In many cases, prosecutors have urged them to be locked up while on trial, despite the virus crisis that has devastated prisons and prisons in the US.
The then deputy attorney general Jeffrey Rosen, who entered the highest DOJ post when Barr resigned last month, said in a memorandum to prosecutors in September that they should consider using inciting conspiracy charges against violent protesters, saying that it’s not proof of a conspiracy to overthrow the US government. No one charged with the civil unrest caused by George Floyd’s death has actually been charged with rioting.
The charge, which carries up to 20 years in prison, could apply to those who “forcibly prevent, impede or delay the implementation of U.S. law” or “forcibly seize, seize or possess the United States.” States in violation of its authority, “Rosen wrote.
He cites as a hypothetical example: “a group conspired to seize a federal courthouse or other federal property by force.”
“I do think there are some strong issues, or at least some potential issues, under the statute,” Levenson said Wednesday about those at the Capitol.
The mob smashed windows and broke doors and hid lawmakers as they began voting for Electoral College to confirm Democrat Joe Biden’s victory.. Some rioters, many of whom were not wearing masks, were captured in videos and photos on social media.
“It’s always helpful for prosecutors when people show up in the middle of crime,” said David Sklansky, a professor at Stanford Law School, a former federal prosecutor in California.
The violence came hours after Trump asked his supporters to “fight” to stop the “stealing” of the election and march to the Capitol, while Trump’s personal lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, called for a “trial by a battle ‘.
Trump’s speech during the protest before the chaos broke out is unlikely to be provoked as illegal as violence because he did not specifically appeal to people to storm the Capitol, Sklansky said.
According to the First Freedom of Amendment, speech must be calculated to deliver threatening violence to be considered criminal, he said. Similarly, Giuliani’s remarks were probably not specific enough to be considered criminal.
On Thursday, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said the Trump administration considered the siege “reprehensible.” She said “those who break the law should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Four people died in the chaos on Wednesday, including a woman who was shot dead by police in the Capitol. Three other people died after ‘medical emergencies’ related to the offense. More than 50 Capitol and DC police officers were injured, including several who were hospitalized, officials said.
The FBI asked for tips, photos and videos to identify those who participated in the violence. U.S. attorneys in several states, including Kentucky, Ohio and Oregon, have said people in their home states could face charges if they travel to Washington and take part in the riots.
U.S. Attorney for Detroit and surrounding communities, Matthew Schneider, said investigators will review video footage and other evidence. Serious charges – including destruction of property worth more than $ 1,000, incitement to riot, civil disorder, rioting, use of a destructive device such as a pipe bomb – could possibly have a place in Michigan, if there are connections with the state is.
But it will take time to go through the evidence, he said.
‘I’m personally disgusted and terrified of this. It’s just nauseating to me. “It’s sick of what people have done inside the Capitol,” Schneider said. But he added: ‘There is a big difference here between peaceful protests and acts of violence. Just because people have traveled to Washington, DC, they do not necessarily make criminals. ”
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Richer reports from Boston and Whitehurst from Salt Lake City. Associated Press Reporter David Eggert contributed to this report from Lansing, Michigan.