Peter Navarro, a former senior advisor to President Donald Trump, is facing the possibility of serving a prison sentence after being found guilty of criminal contempt of Congress charges. A federal judge has ordered Navarro to report to prison for a four-month sentence, despite a pending appeal of his earlier conviction on two counts of contempt of Congress.
The charges were brought against Navarro after he defied a subpoena from the Democrat-controlled House Jan. 6 Select Committee, which demanded the turnover of certain documents and his testimony in a sworn deposition. Navarro had requested to be released from prison pending appeal, and although he was granted a temporary delay to file a brief presenting his arguments against imprisonment, the judge ultimately denied the motion.
The judge dismissed Navarro’s claim that he believed President Trump had invoked executive privilege, which would have excused him from compliance. Additionally, the judge rejected Navarro’s assertion that Trump’s executive privilege made him immune from prosecution for contempt of Congress, as Navarro failed to provide evidence of Trump properly invoking executive privilege on his behalf regarding the select committee’s subpoena.
However, Judge Mehta had not concluded his actions at that point.
Furthermore, he invalidated Navarro’s assertion that the charges of contempt, as well as the subsequent legal proceedings and conviction, were driven by political prejudice.
The judge wrote that Navarro “offers no actual proof to support that contention.”
“If anything, the record demonstrates just the opposite,” Mehta further asserted.
This occurred due to the non-compliance of two additional senior Trump aides, namely former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former Deputy Chief of Staff Dan Scavino, who both defied subpoenas issued by the same committee. Nevertheless, they were able to evade legal consequences for their actions.
“Defendant’s cynical, self-serving claim of political bias poses no question at all, let alone a ‘substantial’ one,” Mehta declared.
The judge concluded:
For the foregoing reasons, Defendant’s request for release pending appeal is denied.
“Unless this Order is stayed or vacated by the D.C. Circuit, Defendant shall report to the designated Bureau of Prisons (BOP) facility on the date ordered by the BOP.”
Politico has reported that a specific date for Navarro to surrender himself to prison has not yet been determined. However, there is still a possibility that he may be able to avoid serving his sentence if the D.C. appeals court promptly intervenes. Nevertheless, it appears increasingly likely that Navarro will become the first individual from former President Trump’s “inner circle” of senior aides and advisors to be incarcerated in connection with the post-2020 election endeavors to contest the disputed outcomes in certain states.
The Democrat-led Jan. 6 Committee has accused Navarro of playing a significant role in formulating a strategy to encourage members of Congress and state legislatures to challenge the reported results, either during the congressional certification on January 6, which was briefly disrupted by the Capitol riot, or at the state level.
