Trump ally Steve Bannon loses appeal of conviction for defying Jan. 6 probe
FILE PHOTO: Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon addresses the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) annual meeting in National Harbor, Maryland, U.S., February 24, 2024. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File Photo
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. federal appeals court on Friday upheld the conviction of Steve Bannon, a former top adviser to Donald Trump, for defying a subpoena from the congressional panel that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.
Bannon was convicted in 2022 of two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to turn over documents or testify to the House of Representatives committee the investigated the Capitol riot.
He was sentenced to four months in prison, but has been allowed to remain free during his appeal.
Bannon, a key figure on the American right, argued on appeal that he was barred from making key arguments in his defense at trial, including that his lawyer advised him he did not have to comply with the subpoena.
(Reporting by Andrew Goudsward; Editing by Scott Malone)