Trump advisor Peter Navarro found GUILTY of contempt of Congress for defying January 6 subpoena
- Navarro now faces up to one year in prison for refusing to cooperate with the congressional subpoena
- U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled that executive privilege argument did not apply to Navarro
- ‘I am willing to go to prison to settle this issue,’ Navarro said outside the courthouse Thursday
Former President Donald Trump advisor Peter Navarro was convicted for being in contempt of Congress after not complying with a House Jan. 6 Committee subpoena.
Navarro served as Trump’s White House trade adviser and promoted the former president’s claims of mass voter fraud in the 2020 election.
The verdict finding him guilty on two counts of contempt of Congress came down Thursday after a short trial. Navarro faces up to one year in jail and a minimum of 30 days.
The House January 6 Committee – which wrapped up its work in January – had issued a subpoena for documents and a deposition.
Navarro’s attorneys claimed that he was not ignoring the congressional panel, and had asked them to contact the Trump administration to determine if the information they were seeking would have covered him under executive privilege.
But prosecutors said he was acting ‘above the law’ by not complying with the subpoena.
Former Trump White House trade adviser Peter Navarro arrives after lunch break at U.S. Federal Courthouse in Washington, Thursday, Sept. 7
Peter Navarro, adviser to former U.S. President Donald Trump, returns from a break during his trial on contempt of Congress charges
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled that executive privilege argument did not apply to Navarro.
He was heckled by protestors holding signs that read ‘Trump lost’ after departing the courthouse.
‘I said from the beginning this was going to the Supreme Court,’ Navarro said after his conviction in a short press conference before it was derailed by the hecklers.
‘I am willing to go to prison to settle this issue,’ he continued.
Navarro is the second Trump aide to face contempt of Congress charges.
Former White House adviser Steve Bannon was convicted of two counts in 2022. He was then sentenced to four months in prison, but has not served time yet since he appealed the decision.
The Select House committee investigating the Capitol attack urged the Justice Department to pursue at least three criminal charges against Donald Trump.
In a series of high-profile hearings last year, the committee made its case that Trump was pressuring his then-Vice President Mike Pence to throw the election results back to the states in an attempt to overturn the election results.
Trump is facing several lawsuits related to his attempts to overthrow the results of the 2020 election. He has denied wrongdoing and has said he was acting within the law.
Last month, he was indicted along with 18 co-defendants in Georgia for allegedly running a conspiracy ring to reverse his 2020 election defeat in the state.
He was indicted earlier this summer in a separate federal case in Washington, D.C., related to his alleged obstruction of the 2020 election.
Trump also faces prosecution in Manhattan on state charges of campaign finance violations in connection with alleged hush-money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels.
He also faces federal charges in connection to the mishandling of classified documents.
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