Federal judge warns of Jan. 6 case backlog as Supreme Court weighs key obstruction statute

Washington — Just days after the Supreme Court agreed to examine the breadth of an obstruction law used to prosecute hundreds of defendants for their alleged actions during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, the court's very consideration of the law is already being invoked in both federal district court proceedings and by those already convicted in high-profile Jan. 6 cases.

In one such hearing Friday, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell warned of a possible backlog of cases involving the federal statute, known as 1512, which accuses defendants of obstructing an official proceeding. 

The Supreme Court has not yet scheduled oral arguments in the case challenging how the Justice Department has used the statute, though they are expected to take place in the spring, with a decision coming by the end of June.