Judge, for now, refuses to dismiss Steve Bannon’s conviction in contempt of Congress case

U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols has dismissed the Justice Department's request to vacate Steve Bannon's criminal conviction for contempt of Congress, stemming from his refusal to testify before a congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot. However, the decision may not be final.

The judge ruled that prosecutors had not adequately explained their reasons for seeking the dismissal of Bannon's indictment. Nonetheless, he affirmed that the government retains the right to refile its request if it complies with legal procedures.

This ruling came several months after the U.S. Supreme Court, at prosecutors' request, overturned a lower court's decision upholding Bannon's conviction for defying a subpoena from the House committee. In February, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, a Trump appointee, stated that her Washington-based office decided that "in its prosecutorial discretion," dismissing the criminal case "is in the interests of justice." However, Pirro did not provide further details.

It is important to note that Bannon had already served a four-month prison sentence after a jury found him guilty of contempt of Congress in 2022. A federal appeals court in Washington had previously upheld the conviction, which was later overruled by the Supreme Court. President Trump appointed Nichols to the bench during his first term in office.