On April 15, 2021, White House adviser Peter Navarro was convicted of criminal contempt for defying a subpoena from a congressional panel investigating the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Navarro, a policy adviser to former President Donald Trump, had been subpoenaed to testify before the House Oversight and Reform Committee in February, but the White House had instructed him to ignore the order because the panel had not received approval from the former president’s counsel. The Congressional panel then issued a criminal contempt order against Navarro for his refusal to appear, prompting U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes to issue a ruling finding him guilty of criminal contempt.
Navarro has been sentenced to three days in jail and fined $30,000 for his actions, and he has since apologized for his “lack of cooperation.” He is the first Trump administration official to be convicted of criminal contempt of Congress for the Jan. 6 insurrection.
