Jack Smith says Jan. 6 was 'unprecedented assault' on American democracy
Special Counsel Jack Smith just delivered brief remarks on the indictment.
Speaking for roughly three minutes, he referred to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack as "an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy."
"It was fueled by lies, lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government: the nation's process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election. "
Smith said that his office would seek a "speedy trial."
He also praised the law enforcement who protected the Capitol during the attack.
"They're patriots and they're the very best of us. They did not just defend a building or the people sheltering in it," Smith said. "They put their lives on the line to defend who we are as a country and as a people. They defended the very institutions and principles that define the United States."
Who is Judge Moxila Upadhyaya, the judge presiding over Trump's court appearance on Thursday?
Trump will appear before Judge Moxila Upadhyaya, a federal magistrate judge in Washington, D.C., on Thursday.
Upadhyaya, born in India and later raised in Missouri, was appointed to the D.C. District court in 2022, and she has heard cases concerning disability benefits and Social Security, among others, according to her court biography. Before joining the bench, Upadhyaya practiced commercial and administrative law at Venable LLP, a large corporate law firm, where she became a partner.
In her practice, she primarily focused on “complex commercial disputes,” according to the firm’s website, and her clients included private universities, hospital systems. Upadhyaya's work at Venable to try to free prisoners who claim their innocence helped earn the firm the Mid-Atlantic Innocence Project’s Defender of Innocence Award in 2009.
Upadhyaya previously clerked for the D.C. Court of Appeals and later for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, where she now presides, and studied law at American University, according to her official bio. She will preside over Trump's initial court appearance.
John Eastman is unindicted co-conspirator No. 2, his lawyer says
In a statement to NBC News, an attorney for John Eastman confirmed that his client was unindicted co-conspirator No. 2 from today's indictment.
Eastman was as a member of Trump's legal team that attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election. He authored a memo that claimed then-Vice President Mike Pence could overturn Joe Biden's victory during the Jan. 6, 2021, proceedings in Congress.
Eastman's attorney, Harvey Silverglate, reiterated that he plans to send a memo to the special counsel outlining why he believes Eastman is innocent.
More than 1,069 people have been arrested so far in Jan. 6 cases
In the more than two years since a mob of Trump supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol, more than 1,069 people have been arrested on charges stemming from the riot, according to the Justice Department.
The department announced the figure today in the arrest of a Kentucky man who allegedly participated in the “heave-ho push” against law enforcement officers that day.
Of those arrested, more than 350 have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, the Justice Department said. DOJ is still investigating the riot and those involved, it said.
Rudy Giuliani has not been contacted by special counsel, spokesperson says
A spokesperson for Giuliani told NBC News today that the former New York City mayor and ex-Trump attorney "has not been contacted by the Special Counsel's office, and he has no reason to believe that he will."
Giuliani helped lead the legal challenges to Trump's loss in the 2020 election.
Prosecutors list high-profile officials who told Trump there was no mass election fraud
Prosecutors say a number of high-profile government officials had informed Trump repeatedly that there was no evidence to support his claims of election fraud in 2020, including:
- Vice President Mike Pence
- Senior leaders at the Department of Justice appointed by Trump
- The director of national intelligence
- The agency at the Department of Homeland Security that oversees cybersecurity
- Senior White House attorneys selected by Trump
- State legislators and officials, some of whom were Trump's allies
- State and federal courts
The indictment also pointed out that senior staffers on Trump's campaign informed him that on Nov. 7, 2020, he had only a 5 to 10% chance of "prevailing in the election."
Prosecutors argue Trump exploited violence at the Capitol after it started to unfold
Under the first count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S., federal prosecutors argue that once violence began at the Capitol on Jan. 6, Trump exploited the situation.
The indictment says that Trump continued to blast out claims of election fraud after the riot began unfolding.
"As violence ensued, the Defendant and co-conspirators exploited the disruption by redoubling efforts to levy false claims of election fraud and convince Members of Congress to further delay the certification based on those claims," prosecutors wrote in the indictment.
Special counsel to speak shortly
Special counsel Jack Smith will deliver remarks at 6 p.m. ET.
Trump case assigned to Judge Tanya S. Chutkan
The Trump case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan, according to the court docket. Chutkan, an Obama appointee, is the only federal judge in Washington, D.C., who has sentenced Jan. 6 defendants to sentences longer than the government had requested.