Jan. 6 committee refers Trump to DOJ for criminal charges

Criminal referrals on multiple charges were approved unanimously.

The House select committee examining the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol has held its final public meeting.

The panel voted to approve criminal referrals for former President Donald Trump regarding his failed attempt to overturn the 2020 election.


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Committee expected to recommend criminal charges

Monday is the last public meeting of the Jan. 6 committee, with ABC News learning members are expected to recommend criminal charges be pursued against former President Donald Trump in connection with the Capitol attack nearly two years ago.

Sources familiar with the committee’s deliberations say the recommended charges will include conspiracy to defraud the United States and obstruction of an official proceeding. The committee also is considering recommending Trump be charged with insurrection.

Members have been working against the clock to try to finish their work before Republicans take control of the House in the new year.

Any decision about whether to bring any charges against the former president would be left to the Department of Justice. DOJ has been conducting its own parallel investigation into the events of Jan. 6 and isn't obligated to act on congressional referrals.

-ABC News' Katherine Faulders


What it means for the committee to make criminal referrals

The Justice Department is not obligated to act on referrals, but public hearings outlining Trump's "seven-point plan" to overturn the 2020 presidential election have amped up pressure on Garland to bring criminal charges against Trump -- which would be the first in history against a former president.

The Justice Department for months has been conducting its own separate investigation into Jan. 6, which has included multiple former senior Trump White House staffers along with his close allies appearing before grand juries.

"The committee's public hearings have raised the stakes enormously for the country, in the sense that the criminal activity shown to have gone on is so brazen, that if the Justice Department does not enforce the law in this case, it really does further erode the rule of law and democracy," Ryan Goodman, a New York University School of Law professor, told ABC News.

Click here for more on the pros, cons and limits of a congressional criminal referral.