Navarro attorney claims ‘mistrial’ after ex-Trump adviser convicted

An attorney for Peter Navarro called for a mistrial Thursday, just after the former economic adviser to former President Trump was convicted of contempt of Congress.

Stanley Woodward, who represented Navarro in his contempt of Congress case, claimed that jurors, who deliberated for nearly five hours before reaching a verdict, went outside during their break and were exposed to protesters with signs related to the Jan. 6 riot.

However, prosecutors claimed they did not see any protesters outside the exit used by the jurors, and the presiding judge, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, said he would not rule on the mistrial request until the defense provided him with video or photo evidence. 

Navarro was convicted of two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

The former Trump advisor has argued that he was prevented from producing documents and appearing for a deposition, as requested by the committee, because Trump invoked executive privilege.

However, the judge barred Navarro’s attorneys from using the privilege argument at trial, finding that they had failed to prove that the former president formally invoked executive privilege.

Navarro is the second Trump ally to face contempt of Congress charges, after former White House adviser Steve Bannon was similarly convicted of two counts of contempt earlier this year.

Updated at 5:11 pm.