U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta has rejected an appeal by former U.S. President Donald Trump, as well as several far-right U.S. figures, to dismiss a civil lawsuit filed by Capitol Police officers alleging their responsibility for the Jan. 6 attacks.
The lawsuit, therefore, is moving forward. The officers involved in attempts to contain the mob that day contend that Trump and other far-right agitators violated federal laws in Washington by cheering the crowd to come to Congress as Joe Biden’s confirmation of victory in the 2020 presidential election was taking place.
Mehta has dismissed Trump’s argument that he had presidential immunity — a justification he has made in similar lawsuits — and has informed agents that the lawsuit could go forward against members of armed militias, such as Oath Keepers, Three Percenters and Proud Boys, CNN reports.
However, he has dismissed the agents’ charges in the cases of prominent far-right personalities Roger Stone and Ali Alexander, finding that their speech in relation to those events is protected by the First Amendment — which protects free speech.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
