Jan. 6 panel to consider criminal referrals against Trump, allies in final session

WASHINGTON – The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol plans to consider issuing criminal referrals against former President Donald Trump and his top allies during a final meeting Monday as it prepares to release a report laying out its findings about the attempt to overturn the 2020 election.

The committee announced a meeting Monday during which members are expected to discuss the report and recommendations for legislative changes, and to consider criminal and civil referrals against individuals it has concluded broke laws or committed ethical violations.

Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., the chair of the committee, said the panel was considering referrals to “five or six” entities, including the Justice Department, the House Ethics Committee, the Federal Election Commission and bar associations. Such referrals would not carry any legal weight or compel any action, but they would send a powerful signal that a congressional committee believes that the individuals cited committed crimes or other infractions.

In the case of Trump, an official finding that a former president should be prosecuted for violating the law would be a rare and unusual step for the legislative branch to take.

In addition to the former president, the panel is likely to consider referring some of his allies to the Justice Department, including John Eastman, a conservative lawyer who was an architect of Trump’s efforts to invalidate his electoral defeat.

The committee has argued in court that Eastman most likely violated two federal laws for his role in the scheme, including obstructing an official act of Congress and defrauding the American public.

The committee’s full report is scheduled for release Wednesday. Additional attachments and transcripts will be released before the end of the year, according to a committee aide who spoke on the condition of anonymity without authorization to discuss the plans in advance.

The panel has already endorsed overhauling the Electoral Count Act, the law that Trump and his allies tried to exploit on Jan. 6 in an attempt to cling to power. Lawmakers have also discussed changes to the Insurrection Act and legislation to enforce the 14th Amendment’s prohibition on insurrectionists holding office.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.