It has been noted that on Tuesday, oral arguments commenced in the case of Fischer vs. United States and scrutinized the legitimacy of felony charges of obstructing an official proceeding against individuals involved in the January 6 United States Capitol riot.
The court’s ruling is set to carry significant weight, as it could potentially influence the fate of hundreds of defendants from the January 6 riot and potentially undermine certain federal charges against Donald Trump.
As of now, the conservative wing of the court has expressed doubt regarding the government’s case, which U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar is making. Notably, Justice Neil Gorsuch posed an epic question, to put it mildly.
Specifically, he inquired whether Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), who infamously pulled a fire alarm to delay a House vote, could face charges under the same statute.
“What does that mean for the breadth of this statute?” Gorsuch asked. “Would a sit-in that disrupts a trial or access to a federal courthouse qualify? Would a heckler at today’s audience qualify, or a heckler at the State of the Union address? Would pulling a fire alarm before a vote qualify for 20 years in federal prison?”
“There are multiple elements of the statute that may not be satisfied by those hypotheticals,” insisted Prelogar. “It relates to the point I was going to make to the chief justice about the breadth of the statute. These built-in limitations are things that I think would potentially suggest that many of those things wouldn’t be something the government can charge as 1512(c)(2).”
She added, “It would include the fact that the actus reus does require obstruction, which we understand to be meaningful interference. That means if you have some minor disruption or delay or some minimal outburst—”
“So my outburst requires the court to reconvene after the proceeding has been brought back into line, or the pulling of the fire alarm, the vote has to be rescheduled, or the protest outside of the courthouse makes it inaccessible for a period of time,” Gorsuch interjected. “Are those all federal felonies subject to 20 years in prison?”
