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Steve Bannon's latest appeal to delay July 1 prison deadline is rejected as he attempts to overturn contempt of Congress conviction
A last-minute appeal lodged by Steve Bannon to delay his prison deadline has been rejected by a federal court panel as he fights his conviction for criminal contempt of Congress.
The former adviser to Donald Trump will now have to report to prison by July 1 to begin serving his four-month sentence.
Bannon's lawyers asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to allow him to remain free while he continues to overturn the conviction all the way up to the Supreme Court, if necessary.
But in a 2-1 vote, the panel said Bannon's case 'does not warrant a departure from the general rule' that defendants begin serving their sentence after conviction.
After this rejection, Bannon is expected to ask the Supreme Court to stave off his four-month prison sentence.
Donald Trump ally Steve Bannon's appeal to be allowed to stay out of prison as he pursues to overturn his conviction for criminal contempt of Congress has been rejected by a federal court panel
Bannon spoke with Trump at least twice on January 5, attended a planning meeting at the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C. and said on his podcast, 'all hell is going to break loose tomorrow,' according to J6 committee
The longtime ally was sentenced to prison after a jury in 2022 found him guilty on two counts of contempt of Congress for declining to appear before the House investigation into the January 6 attack and for refusing to hand over documents.
However trial judge Carl Nichols allowed him to remain free as he appealed the conviction.
That changed two weeks ago after a higher court rejected Bannon's appeal. Nichols said he did not believe that the 'original basis' for his stay of the sentence existed any longer.
Bannon's lawyer at trial argued that the former Trump adviser did not ignore the subpoena but was still engaged in good-faith negotiations with the congressional committee when he was charged.
Bannon was convicted of failing to comply with a subpoena by the House January 6 Committee
The defense said he had been relying on the advice on his attorney, who believed that Bannon couldn´t testify or produce documents because Trump had invoked executive privilege.
Lawyers for Bannon previously said that the case raises serious legal questions that would likely need to be resolved by the Supreme Court but he would have already finished his prison sentence by the time the case gets there.
In court papers, Bannon's lawyers further said that there is a 'strong public interest' in allowing him to remain free in the run-up to the 2024 election because Bannon's role as a top adviser in Trump's campaign.
His lawyers have also argued that the Justice Department is 'giving an appearance that the government is trying to prevent Bannon from fully assisting with the campaign and speaking out on important issues, and also ensuring the government exacts its pound of flesh before the possible end of the Biden Administration' by trying to imprison him now.
But prosecutors disagree and said in court papers that Bannon's 'role in political discourse' is irrelevant.
Tear gas is released into a crowd of protesters, with one wielding a Confederate battle flag that reads 'Come and Take It,' during clashes with Capitol police at a rally to contest the certification of the 2020 U.S. presidential election results by the U.S. Congress, at the US Capitol Building in Washington, US January 6, 2021
'Bannon also cannot reconcile his claim for special treatment with the bedrock principle of equal justice under the law. Even-handed application of the bail statute requires Bannon's continued detention,' prosecutors wrote.
Another former Trump aide, economic advisor Peter Navarro, is currently serving a four-month sentence in a Florida prison after being convicted of similar charges. Navarro helped promote a plan he dubbed the 'Green Bay Sweep' that became part of Trump's election overturn effort.
Bannon has raised a defense of counsel defense saying he relied on a lawyer's advice when failing to comply with a congressional subpoena. Trump also tried to muster such an argument, citing advice by Michael Cohen in the Stormy Daniels payoff.
Bannon helped helm meetings at a strategy 'war room' at the Willard Hotel in Washington that brought together key figures in the election overturn effort.
'I've got great lawyers, and we're going to go all the way to the Supreme Court if we have to,' Bannon said outside court last week after being ordered to prison.
'There's nothing that can shut me up and nothing that will shut me up. There's not a prison built or a jail built that will ever shut me up,' he said, while a protester held up a 'Lock them up' sign.
'They're not going to shut up Trump. They're not going to shut up Navarro. They're not going to shut up Bannon, and they're certainly not going to shut up MAGA,' he said.