TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Azya Thornton on Aug 30, 2024

Following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that raised the standard for obstruction charges, federal prosecutors have decided not to pursue a similar charge against Joseph Fischer, a former police officer involved in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. According to Reuters, the court’s 6-3 decision requires prosecutors to prove that obstructing an official proceeding impaired or attempted to impair the integrity of documents or records. The ruling is reported to affect over 250 cases from the Capitol attack. The U.S. Justice Department has dropped obstruction charges in more than 60 cases, but plans to continue to pursue them in specific cases where the stricter standard can be met, such as those involving direct tampering with documents.