Former Trump advisor Peter Navarro filed another request with the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, aiming to avoid serving time in prison after spending approximately two weeks behind bars for contempt of Congress charges.
His legal team submitted a petition for reconsideration of an emergency request he filed last month, which Chief Justice John Roberts previously denied. Mr. Navarro is staring down a four-month prison sentence, of which he’s already served approximately 15 days.
“Dr. Peter K. Navarro self-surrendered to the custody of the Bureau of Prisons on March 19, 2024 and has now served fifteen (15) days of his four (4) month sentence,” read the new petition, filed Tuesday.
“Of note, on March 26, 2024, the D.C. Circuit set a briefing schedule in his appeal, providing that briefing will not be concluded until July 19, 2024, after he is scheduled to have served the entirety of his prison sentence. Accordingly, we respectfully request your reconsideration of the Chief Justice’s denial.”
Justice Roberts issued a brief opinion stating that the “application concerns only the question” of whether Mr. Navarro has “met his burden to establish his entitlement to relief under the Bail Reform Act” after appeals courts rejected his arguments.
Lower courts have found that the former Trump aide had forfeited a challenge that he did not need to appear before Congress.
“I see no basis to disagree with the determination that Navarro forfeited those arguments in the release proceeding, which is distinct from his pending appeal on the merits,” Justice Roberts wrote.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s regulations permit emergency applications rejected by one justice to be resubmitted to another.
In Tuesday’s petition, there was a request for Justice Neil Gorsuch, appointed by former President Donald Trump, to consider Mr. Navarro’s appeal.
The petition follows the dismissal of his appeal by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Monday through a brief order.
“These arguments are without merit under clear, longstanding precedent,” a panel of three Democrat-appointed judges wrote.
“If Navarro were correct, the statute would leave the United States with no ability to retrieve Presidential records from employees if they refuse to return Presidential records after being disciplined or exiting federal employment.”
Mr. Navarro, a former trade adviser to President Trump, was subpoenaed twice to testify by the now-dissolved House committee investigating the January 6, 2021, breach at the U.S. Capitol.
He failed to comply with the requests, leading to charges of contempt of Congress. In January, he was sentenced to four months in prison and a $9,500 fine.
He is currently serving his term at the Federal Correctional Institution in Miami, or FCI Miami, described as a minimum security institution.
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