In a 49-page opinion, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, an Obama appointee, rejected the defendants' various arguments, including that the obstruction charge is unconstitutionally vague and that the prosecutors' application of it in the context of the riot imperils First Amendment protections for demonstrators.
"Their alleged conduct was no mere political protest or trespass. If proven, their conduct crossed the line to criminal conduct: they 'corruptly' conspired to, and did, 'obstruct, influence, and impede an official proceeding,' " Mehta wrote, quoting the statute's text.
Mehta is the third judge so far to uphold the obstruction of an official proceeding charge in challenges brought by Capitol riot defendants.
The count is among the most serious that have been brought by the Justice Department in response to the attack. If a defendant is found guilty of obstructing an official proceeding, it carries a maximum possible prison sentence of 20 years.
See my posted article from the Revolver news organization today. It helps explain much of the January 6 Reichstag fire.