A man charged in connection to the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol accused a Department of Justice lawyer of lying to the Supreme Court during arguments in a case that could upend convictions related to the riot.
More than 1,200 individuals have been charged for their alleged involvement in the riot, which saw a group of former President Donald Trump's supporters violently protest the 2020 election results, which he has continually claimed, without providing any substantial evidence, was stolen.
The Supreme Court heard arguments this week in Fischer v. United States, a case filed by a defendant in a Jan. 6 case challenging the DOJ's use of the "obstruction of an official proceeding" charge, which has been used against Jan. 6 defendants for allegedly disrupting Joe Biden's Electoral College certification.
After arguments wrapped up on Tuesday, Will Pope, a Kansas man who has faced charges for his alleged role in the riot, accused Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, who represented the government in the case, of lying to the court.
Conservatives have raised concerns about her assertion that the average sentencing for a Jan. 6 defendant facing only the obstruction felony charge was about 24 to 26 months, arguing that some defendants have served longer sentences for this charge. However, Prelogar noted in her arguments this figure referred to a limited number of cases.
"The DOJ wanted me to plead to 1512 with a range of 41 to 51 months even though their own prosecutor acknowledged that I was 'entirely peaceful' and didn't destroy anything. Prelogar was straight up lying to the Supreme Court during yesterday's hearing," he wrote.
It remains uncertain whether Pope's case would have been included among those cited by Prelogar, as she only referred to cases in which defendants only faced no other felony charges beyond the obstruction count.
"We've looked at the average sentences here. There are about 50 that have gone to sentencing—conviction and sentencing on just a 1512(c)(2) as the only felony. So I think that's the best way to gauge it," Prelogar said.
She continued: "This was when the sentencing enhancement did apply, so the ranges were higher. The average sentence among the approximately 50 people is 26 months of imprisonment, and the median has been 24 months."
Newsweek reached out to the Justice Department via email and Pope on X, formerly Twitter, for comment.
According to the DOJ, Pope's charges include obstruction of an official proceeding, civil disorder, entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a restricted building or grounds, impeding ingress and egress in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly conduct in a Capitol building, impeding passage through the Capitol grounds and parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has not been convicted or sentenced for his alleged role in the incident.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reported that Pope emphasized nonviolence in social media posts prior to Jan. 6.
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