Judge Orders Release of Emails from Trump Adviser, Suggests Trump Committed Crimes
The ruling marked a major legal win for the January 6 Committee as it looks to correspondence from Mr. Eastman, the lawyer who was consulting with Mr. Trump as he attempted to overturn the presidential election.
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Monday asserted it is “more likely than not” that President Trump committed crimes in his attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 election, ruling to order the release of more than 100 emails from Trump adviser John Eastman to the committee investigating the January 6 protest at the Capitol.
The ruling by District Judge David Carter marked a major legal win for the panel as it looks to correspondence from Mr. Eastman, the lawyer who was consulting with Mr. Trump as he attempted to overturn the presidential election.
“Based on the evidence, the Court finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on January 6, 2021,” Judge Carter wrote in the ruling submitted in the federal Central District of California.
Mr. Eastman was trying to withhold documents from the committee on the basis of an attorney-client privilege claim between him and the former president.
The committee responded earlier this month, arguing that there is a legal exception allowing the disclosure of communications regarding ongoing or future crimes.
An attorney representing Mr. Eastman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The March 3 filing from the committee was their most formal effort to link the former president to a federal crime. Lawmakers do not have the power to bring criminal charges on their own and can only make a referral to the Justice Department.
The department has been investigating last year’s protest, but it has not given any indication that it is considering seeking charges against Mr. Trump.
The committee argued in the court documents that Mr. Trump and his associates engaged in a “criminal conspiracy” to prevent Congress from certifying President Biden’s victory in the Electoral College.
Mr. Trump and those working with him then spread false information about the outcome of the presidential election and pressured state officials to overturn the results, potentially violating multiple federal laws, the panel said.
