WASHINGTON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - A U.S. Justice Department attorney urged a federal appeals court on Thursday not to block a Republican congressman's cellphone from investigators working on a probe into efforts by then-President Donald Trump to overturn the result of the 2020 election.
U.S. Representative Scott Perry - a Trump ally who helped spread false claims that the 2020 election was stolen through widespread voting fraud - has sought to prevent the Justice Department from reviewing the contents of his cellphone since it was seized last summer.
At the heart of the legal dispute is whether the contents of his cellphone are shielded from disclosure under a provision in the U.S. Constitution that gives Congress members immunity from civil litigation or criminal prosecution for actions that arise in the course of their legislative duties.
Perry's conduct is under scrutiny by Special Counsel Jack Smith's office because of the prominent role he played in the lead-up to the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by thousands of Trump supporters trying to block Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Biden's election victory.
Perry's attorney John Rowley argued on Thursday that private phone calls with people outside of Congress were part of Perry's "informal legislative fact-finding" in the lead-up to the Jan. 6, 2021 certification of the 2020 presidential election. He said such communications are constitutionally protected from disclosure to the Justice Department.
Rowley...
This story is the second in an ongoing series on the Cost of Fraud, as Open the Books tallies the hidden fees on American tax returns. Click here to read the first story on fraudulent autism billi...