Former U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin Under Internal Review After ’60 Minutes’ Interview

Former acting Washington U.S. Attorney Michael Sherwin has been referred for internal investigation after a 60 Minutes interview discussing Capitol insurrection cases. D.C. District Judge Amit Mehta called for an emergency hearing on Tuesday with several lawyers after Sherwin’s interview aired. “The government, quite frankly, in my view, should know better,” Mehta said. “This case will not be tried in the media.”

Sherwin said on 60 Minutes that, “It’s unequivocal that Trump was the magnet that brought the people to D.C. on the 6th. We have soccer moms from Ohio that were arrested saying, ‘Well, I did this because my president said I had to take back our house.’ That moves the needle towards that direction. Maybe the President is culpable for those actions.”

When asked if the more than 300 arrested and charged people from the Capitol insurrection could face sedition charges, which have substantially higher penalties, Sherwin said, “I personally believe the evidence is trending towards that, and probably meets those elements,” Sherwin said. “I believe the facts do support those charges. And I think that, as we go forward, more facts will support that.”

“Rules and procedures were not complied with” when Sherwin did the interview, said John Crabb Jr., lead criminal prosecutor for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C.

Defense attorney Carmen Hernandez said in a statement after Sherwin’s interview that, “I thought the comments by Mr. Sherwin were very prejudicial.”

Sherwin did not seek Justice Department approval before his interview. His speculation about sedition charges for rioters, as well as former President Donald Trump‘s culpability, could lead to charges being dropped in these cases.