Bannon contempt trial: After guilty verdict, Bannon rips Jan. 6 committee members

Ex-White House strategist Steve Bannon is guilty of defying a Jan. 6 subpoena.

Last Updated: July 17, 2024, 3:00 PM EDT

Steve Bannon, who served as former President Donald Trump's chief strategist before departing the White House in August 2017, was found guilty Friday of defying a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Bannon was subpoenaed by the Jan. 6 panel for records and testimony in September of last year.

After the House of Representatives voted to hold him in contempt for defying the subpoena, the Justice Department in November charged Bannon with two counts of criminal contempt of Congress, setting up the trial.

Key headlines

Here is how the news developed. All times are Eastern.
Jul 19, 2022, 2:51 PM EDT

Judge instructs jury of the burden of proof

Prior to opening statements, the judge made clear to the jury that the Justice Department has the burden to prove four distinct elements "beyond a reasonable doubt":

(1) that Bannon was in fact subpoenaed for testimony and/or documents;

(2) that the testimony and/or documents were "pertinent" to the Jan. 6 committee's investigation;

(3) that Bannon "failed to comply or refused to comply" with the subpoena;

(4) that the "failure or refusal to comply was willful."

Jul 19, 2022, 2:44 PM EDT

Jury sworn in after judge denies continuance

A 14-member jury has been sworn in for the contempt trial of ex-Trump strategist Steve Bannon.

Of the 14 jurors, nine are men and five are women.

The swearing-in of the jury comes after U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols denied the defense's request for a one-month delay of the trial, which attorneys for Bannon argued was necessary due to a "seismic shift in the understanding of the parties" of what the government's evidence will be.

"We have a jury that is just about picked," Nichols said in denying the request for a one-month continuance.

One of the jurors, a man who works for an appliance company, said Monday during jury selection that he watched the first Jan. 6 committee hearing and believes the committee is "trying to find the truth about what happened" on Jan. 6.

Another juror, a man who works as a maintenance manager for the Washington, D.C., Parks and Recreation department, said he believes what happened on Jan. 6 "doesn't make sense."

Another juror, a woman who works as a photographer for NASA, said "a lot" of her "photographer friends were at the Capitol" on Jan. 6, and she has watched some of the Jan. 6 hearings on the news.

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