Prosecutor: Evidence in Capitol attack 'trending' toward sedition charges


Michael Sherwin, the former acting U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., told CBS News that evidence collected as part of the investigation into the Jan. 6 Capitol riot most likely support sedition charges.
"I personally believe the evidence is trending toward that, and probably meets those elements," he said during an interview with 60 Minutes that aired Sunday night. "I believe the facts do support those charges. And I think that, as we go forward, more facts will support that." Sherwin led the Justice Department's inquiry into the attack until Friday, when he returned to his role as a federal prosecutor in Miami.
Seditious conspiracy — conspiring to overthrow the government — is a rarely invoked charge. The last federal sedition case was in 2010, when members of a Michigan militia were charged with plotting to start an armed conflict with the government, The New York Times reports. The defendants were acquitted, and the judge said the Justice Department was unable to satisfactorily prove the militia members had entered "a concrete agreement to forcibly oppose the United States government."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Former President Donald Trump told supporters to attend the "Stop the Steal" rally on the morning of Jan. 6, and during a speech that day he repeated his baseless claims of voter fraud and a rigged election against him. Sherwin was at the rally, and he told 60 Minutes he saw people in "tactical gear" and "Kevlar vests" with "military helmets on. Those individuals, I noticed, left the speeches early. Where it was initially pro-Trump, it digressed to anti-government, anti-Congress, anti-institutional."
Sherwin told 60 Minutes he was alarmed when he saw people at the Capitol climbing the scaffolding and hanging flags, and thought, "This is going bad fast." Soon, the pro-Trump mob stormed into the building, trying to stop Congress from certifying the election results. So far, the government has charged more than 400 people in connection with the riot, Sherwin said, with many accused of trespassing and more than 100 charged with assaulting law enforcement officers.
"It's unequivocal that Trump was the magnet that brought the people to D.C. on the 6th," Sherwin said. "Now the question is, is he criminally culpable for everything that happened during the siege, during the breach? We have people looking at everything."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Book reviews: 'America, América: A New History of the New World' and 'Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple McPherson'
Feature A historian tells a new story of the Americas and the forgotten story of a pioneering preacher
-
Another messaging app used by the White House is in hot water
The Explainer TeleMessage was seen being used by former National Security Adviser Mike Waltz
-
AI hallucinations are getting worse
In the Spotlight And no one knows why it is happening
-
Suspect charged after 11 die in Vancouver car attack
Speed Read Kai-Ji Adam Lo drove an SUV into a crowd at the Lapu Lapu Day festival
-
Kenya arrests alleged ant smugglers
speed read Two young Belgians have been charged for attempting to smuggle ants out of the country to exotic pet buyers
-
Judge ends Eric Adams case, Trump leverage
Speed Read Federal corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams were dismissed, as requested by Trump's Justice Department
-
Texas arrests midwife on felony abortion charges
Speed Read Maria Margarita Rojas and an employee at one of her clinics are the first to be criminally charged under Texas' near-total abortion ban
-
South Carolina to execute prisoner by firing squad
speed read Death row inmate Brad Sigmon prefers the squad over the electric chair or lethal injection, his lawyer said
-
Mexico extradites 29 cartel figures amid US tariff threat
Speed Read The extradited suspects include Rafael Caro Quintero, long sought after killing a US narcotics agent
-
Leonard Peltier released from prison
Speed Read The Native American activist convicted of killing two FBI agents had his life sentence commuted by former President Joe Biden
-
Ex-Sen. Bob Menendez sentenced to 11 years
Speed Read The former New Jersey senator was convicted on federal bribery and corruption charges last year