On Friday the DOJ asked federal judges presiding over a number of indictments stemming from the Capitol riot for a 60 day pause to build their cases, owing to the complexity of prosecuting a violent insurrection targeting United States government, as it is “likely the most complex investigation ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice.” Here’s an excerpt from the motion filed in the case against the leadership of the Oath Keepers charged with the January 6th attack:
“The United States of America hereby moves this Court for a 60-day continuance of the above-captioned proceeding, and further to exclude the time within which the trial must commence under the Speedy Trial Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3161 et seq., on the basis that the ends of justice served by taking such actions outweigh the best interest of the public and the defendant in a speedy trial…”
“The investigation and prosecution of the Capitol Attack will likely be one of the largest in American history, both in terms of the number of defendants prosecuted and the nature and volume of the evidence. Over 300 individuals have been charged in connection with the Capitol Attack. The investigation continues and the government expects that at least one hundred additional individuals will be charged. While most of the cases have been brought against individual defendants, the government is also investigating conspiratorial activity that occurred prior to and on January 6, 2021. Some of the conspiratorial activity being investigated, such as the activity under investigation in this matter, involves a large number of participants. The spectrum of crimes charged and under investigation in connection with the Capitol Attack includes (but is not limited to) trespass, engaging in disruptive or violent conduct in the Capitol or on Capitol grounds, destruction of government property, theft of government property, assaults on federal and local police officers, firearms offenses, civil disorder, obstruction of an official proceeding, possession and use of destructive devices, and conspiracy.”