Biggs, Roy, Massie to Garland: Question Jan. 6 Prosecutions

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Three conservative House members wrote to Attorney General Merrick Garland to again request detailed information on prosecutions stemming from the U.S. Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021.

Reps. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., Chip Roy, R-Texas, and Thomas Massie, R-Ky., sent a letter to Garland Monday expressing concerns about the department’s “aggressive prosecutions of American citizens who were present at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021,” Politico reported.

“On multiple occasions, we, along with our colleagues, have requested from the Department information for our oversight about the nature of the arrests and the prosecutions of these citizens but have yet to receive a sufficient response,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter.

“Indeed, the Department has ignored most of these inquiries. As the Chairmen of Subcommittees of the House Judiciary Committee, we renew these requests as part of our oversight of the Department.”

The three Republicans said the Judiciary Committee recognizes that, “out of the 1,200 individuals the Department has prosecuted in relation to the events at the Capitol on January 6, many of these cases are meritorious and appropriate.”

Their concern, though, is the people who got “caught in the Department’s January 6 sweep [and] have committed no crime or have been overcharged.”

“This information comes at a comes at a critical time as other reports surfaced about potential mistreatment of defendants in federal custody, such as retaliation by detention officers, housing inmates in unsanitary holding cells, providing poor food quality, and subjecting individuals to humiliating punishments,” they wrote.

“In addition, other investigations have pointed to the FBI’s possible involvement in facilitating the events of January 6.”

Politico reported that some Republican sources suggested the lawmakers’ letter is a distraction from remaining focused on holding Garland in contempt of Congress.

Republicans are targeting Garland for refusing to turn over audiotapes of President Joe Biden, and House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has to decide if he will schedule a vote on the matter, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

Garland is scheduled to appear before Jordan’s committee on Tuesday.

The attorney general plans to accuse Republicans of peddling false narratives that endanger law enforcement and undermine the Justice Department’s integrity, Reuters reported.