DC Trial Judge Laments ‘Frustrating’ Wait in Capitol Riot Cases

Senior US District Court Judge Royce Lamberth of the Washington federal trial court expressed frustration at how long lower court judges have waited to receive guidance from appellate courts on how to interpret key statutes in prosecutions against US Capitol rioters.

Speaking Wednesday at an American Bar Association panel, Lamberth, a Ronald Reagan appointee, lamented that it has taken several years for legal challenges that could upend hundreds of Capitol riot prosecutions to make their way to the Washington federal appeals court, and eventually the Supreme Court—all while his court must continue to hold these trials.

“It’s been three years, ...