Steve Bannon, a former advisor to Donald Trump, was ordered by a federal judge on June 6, 2024, to report to prison by July 1 to serve his four-month sentence for contempt of Congress. Bannon had refused to comply with a subpoena from the House committee investigating the January 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol. The judge's decision came after a three-judge panel of the DC Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Bannon's arguments for staying out of prison while his appeal continued. Bannon had claimed that his prosecution was an attempt to silence him and shut down grassroots conservatives, but the appeals court found that he had not met the legal threshold for such a stay.
Bannon's attorney, David Schoen, argued for him to remain free while the appeal was ongoing. However, Judge Carl J. Nichols ruled that he no longer believed Bannon could rightfully continue to postpone serving his sentence. Schoen expressed his disagreement with the decision and even became agitated during the hearing.
Bannon's legal team has promised to ask for a full appeals court review of the panel's decision. If successful, this could potentially delay Bannon's prison sentence further. However, if unsuccessful, he will have to begin serving his sentence on July 1.
Bannon is not the only former Trump associate facing prison time for contempt of Congress charges related to the January 6 investigation. Peter Navarro, another ex-adviser, is currently serving a four-month sentence for refusing to comply with a House subpoena. The Justice Department has also charged former President Trump himself with multiple felony counts in Washington D.C., including obstruction of Congress and making false statements.
Former President Trump reacted to the news of Bannon's prison sentence by calling for members of the House Jan. 6 committee to be indicted, claiming they had deleted and destroyed all material evidence.