Justice Dept. Tries to Intervene on Trump's Behalf in Jan. 6 Lawsuits [View all]

Source: New York Times

Justice Dept. Tries to Intervene on Trump's Behalf in Jan. 6 Lawsuits

The department employed a maneuver that could protect the president from legal and financial consequences in a series of civil suits.


Supporters of Mr. Trump outside the Capitol during the attack on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington. Kenny Holston for The New York Times

By Alan Feuer
March 20, 2025

The Justice Department made an unusual effort on Thursday to short-circuit a series of civil lawsuits seeking to hold President Trump accountable for his supporters' attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Department lawyers argued in court papers filed to the judge overseeing the cases that Mr. Trump was acting in his official capacity as president on Jan. 6 and so the federal government itself should take his place as the defendant. That move, if successful, could protect Mr. Trump from having to face judgment for his role in the Capitol attack and from having to pay financial damages if he were found liable.

The legal maneuver appeared to be Mr. Trump's latest effort to use the powers of the Justice Department to his advantage by effectively having himself removed from the lawsuits, which were brought against him by groups of Capitol Police officers and lawmakers who claim they were injured when the mob stormed the building.

The suits are the last remaining effort to hold Mr. Trump responsible for his role in the Capitol attack after two Jan. 6-related criminal cases against him collapsed last year. ... The department's attempt to place the federal government itself in the lawsuits' line of fire instead of Mr. Trump hinges on whether lawyers can persuade the federal judge overseeing the suits, Amit P. Mehta, that Mr. Trump was in fact acting in his official capacity as president on Jan. 6.

{snip}

Alan Feuer covers extremism and political violence for The Times, focusing on the criminal cases involving the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and against former President Donald J. Trump. More about Alan Feuer
https://www.nytimes.com/by/alan-feuer

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/03/20/us/politics/jan-6-lawsuits.html

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Reposted by Aaron Reichlin-Melnick
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Kyle Cheney
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JUST IN: After years of litigation about Trump's civil liability for Jan. 6, the Justice Department is now moving to substitute itself for Trump in the lawsuit, saying Trump was acting in his official capacity on Jan. 6.

March 20, 2025 at 8:33 PM

JUST IN: After years of litigation about Trump's civil liability for Jan. 6, the Justice Department is now moving to substitute itself for Trump in the lawsuit, saying Trump was acting in his official capacity on Jan. 6.

— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney.bsky.social) 2025-03-21T00:33:22.039Z

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Joshua G. Schraiber
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Holy shit they're using Trump v US. I hope Roberts is super duper happy.
March 20, 2025 at 8:34 PM

Holy shit they're using Trump v US. I hope Roberts is super duper happy.

— Joshua G. Schraiber (@jgschraiber.bsky.social) 2025-03-21T00:34:11.812Z

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Jeff Sabin
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This is for civil immunity, so they’re referencing 1982’s decision in Nixon v. Fitzgerald.
March 20, 2025 at 8:53 PM

This is for civil immunity, so they’re referencing 1982’s decision in Nixon v. Fitzgerald.

— Jeff Sabin (@texanokie07.bsky.social) 2025-03-21T00:53:52.240Z

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Joshua G. Schraiber
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Ah good catch. I read too fast.
March 20, 2025 at 8:54 PM

Ah good catch. I read too fast.

— Joshua G. Schraiber (@jgschraiber.bsky.social) 2025-03-21T00:54:30.854Z