Supreme Court Jan. 6 case could negate 300 charges, including Trump's

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear the case of whether the Sarbanes-Oxley Act can be used to prosecute Jan. 6 defendants, as it has been hundreds of times, including in a charge against former President Donald Trump for obstructing an official proceeding.

The defendant in the case, Joseph W. Fischer, a former Pennsylvania police officer, was prosecuted under Sarbanes-Oxley, a 2002 law that was intended to prevent white-collar crime rather than the kind of uprising that happened on January 6.

The court has to interpret the law, not what Fischer did, however.

It turns out Fischer didn't enter the Capitol until after Congress had ended its activities, and he walked out voluntarily even though prosecutors said he was forcibly removed.

And even if the court decided the law doesn't apply, that's only one of three charges against Trump; he will still have to face charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to interfere with constitutional rights. Such a decision could vacate charges for more than 300 defendants who were there that day.

The Supreme Court will also hear arguments on April 25 about whether Trump had immunity from prosecution because he was president at the time.