Justice Department drops some January 6 obstruction charges and retools plea deals after Supreme Court ruling

Weeks after the Supreme Court narrowed how the Justice Department can pursue obstruction charges against US Capitol rioters, federal prosecutors are beginning to offer retooled plea deals or drop that specific charge against members of the mob.

Weeks after the Supreme Court narrowed how the Justice Department can pursue obstruction charges against January 6 rioters, federal prosecutors are beginning to offer retooled plea deals or drop that specific charge against members of the mob that attacked the US Capitol. These developments are slowly trickling out in court filings, as prosecutors make clear that they plan to continue holding the rioters accountable within the constraints of the justices’ decision. According to Justice Department statistics, there were roughly 259 defendants facing the obstruction charge – a federal statute that makes it a crime to obstruct an official proceeding – when the high court issued its ruling that narrowed how the law can be applied. Among those individuals are five alleged members of the Proud Boys organization, though they aren’t accused of being leaders or coordinating the far-right group’s alleged plot to breach the US Capitol. They are Arthur Jackman, Edward George Jr., Paul Rae and the father-and-son duo of Kevin and Nate Tuck. In a court filing Monday, prosecutors said that each defendant has been offered a plea deal that does not include the obstruction charge. Should they decline that deal, prosecutors said, they would move to dismiss the charge and take the men to trial on other alleged crimes. If prosecutors elected not to drop the obstruction charge, there would likely be lengthy litigation over whether the obstruction charge could be presented to a jury.