A ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday making it harder to charge Jan. 6 defendants with obstruction could affect a handful of the more than four dozen Illinoisans charged so far, including a Chicago man who entered then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s private office and stole a staffer’s wallet and cherished photo.
The justices ruled 6-3 that the charge of obstructing an official proceeding, enacted in 2002 in response to the financial scandal that brought down Enron Corp., must include proof that defendants tried to tamper with or destroy documents.
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A mob supporting U.S. President Donald Trump breaks into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Trump supports attempt to breach the door of the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Trump supporters participated in a rally on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Trump supporters gather in front of the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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A man calls on people to raid the building as Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they try to storm the Capital Building in Washington, D.C., on January 6, 2021.
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A Trump supporter sits in the Senate Chamber on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Rioters loyal to President Donald Trump rally at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.
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Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they try to storm the U.S. Capitol in Washington.
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People protesting the presidential election results inside the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2020.
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Rioters clash with police using a big ladder to try to enter the U.S. Capitol building through the front doors.
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Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., stops to look at the damage in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington.
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Congressional staff members are evacuated by the Capitol Police after protestors breached the U.S. Capitol interrupting a joint congressional session to certify the Electoral College vote in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Members of the D.C. National Guard walk behind a fence placed around the U.S. Capitol building on Jan. 8, 2021, in Washington. Democratic congressional leaders threatened to impeach President Donald Trump for encouraging a mob that stormed the Capitol Building on Wednesday.
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Workers clean damage near an overrun Capitol Police checkpoint a day after a pro-Trump mob broke into the U.S. Capitol Jan. 7, 2021, in Washington.
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Trump supporters break TV equipment outside the the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, during a chaotic protest aimed at thwarting a peaceful transfer of power.
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Trump supporters interact with Capitol Police inside the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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A worker cleans broken glass from one of the entrances to the U.S. Capitol after a pro-Trump mob broke into the building during protests the previous day Jan. 7, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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A supporter of President Donald Trump sits inside the office of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi as he protest inside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C, Jan. 6, 2021.
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U.S. Capitol Police officers receive medical treatment after clashes with protesters who attempt to disrupt the joint session of Congress to certify the Electoral College vote on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump protest in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC.
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Members of U.S. Capitol Police inspect a damaged entrance of the U.S. Capitol, Jan. 7, 2021 in Washington.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump enter the U.S. Capitol as tear gas fills the corridor on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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A protester dressed as George Washington debates with a Capitol Police before being pushed out.
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The bust of U.S. President Zachary Taylor is covered with plastic after blood was smeared on it when a mob broke into the U.S. Capitol.
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With the Washington Monument in the background, people attend a rally in support of President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021.
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A Capitol police officer walks past boarded up windows at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 11, 2021.
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An eight-foot tall steel fence topped with concertina razor wire circles the U.S. Capitol January 29, 2021 in Washington. The fence was built following the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of Donald Trump supporters that left five people dead and scores injured.
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U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) attend a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C. Congress held a joint session today to ratify President-elect Joe Biden's 306-232 Electoral College win over President Donald Trump.
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A statue of Freedom looks out over National Guard troops resting in the Capitol Visitor Center in Washington on Jan. 13, 2020.
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Protestors climb onto the wall of the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump protest inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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A demonstrator talks to police over a barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.
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Shattered glass and a flag are seen in the Capitol after a mob of Trump supporters stormed the building, Jan. 6, 2021, on the same day as a joint session of Congress met to certify the electoral votes from the 2020 presidential election.
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National Guard troops are seen behind shields as they clear a street from protestors outside the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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Supporters of US President Donald Trump demonstrate on the National Mall on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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Riot police push back a crowd of supporters of US President Donald Trump after they stormed the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Protesters enter the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump protest inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., comforts Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa., while taking cover as protesters disrupt the joint session of Congress to certify the Electoral College vote on Jan. 6, 2021.
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National Guard troops rest in the Capitol during a shift break in Washington on Jan. 13, 2021.
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Police detain a person as supporters of President Donald Trump protest outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Police keep a watch on demonstrators who tried to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington.
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Melody Black cries as she kneels by a makeshift memorial for Ashli Babbitt outside the United States Capitol on Thursday Jan. 7, 2021 in Washington, D.C. A pro-Trump mob broke into the U.S. Capitol Thursday during which Babbitt was shot and killed.
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Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington. As Congress prepares to affirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory, thousands of people have gathered to show their support for President Donald Trump and his claims of election fraud.
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Trump supporters gesture to U.S. Capitol Police in the hallway outside of the Senate chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021, near the Ohio Clock.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump clash with police during the tally of electoral votes that that would certify Joe Biden as the winner of the U.S. presidential election outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Jan.6, 2021.
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U.S. Capitol Police officers detain protesters outside of the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Pro-Trump supporters storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, DC.
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Crowds arrive for the "Stop the Steal" rally on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C. Trump supporters gathered in the nation's capital today to protest the ratification of President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College victory over President Trump in the 2020 election.
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An ATF police officer cleans up debris and personal belongings strewn across the floor of the Rotunda in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
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Boxes containing state Electoral College votes are opened during a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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A man breaches a security door at the Capitol in Washington and is met by police officer, Jan 6, 2020.
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People evacuate as a mob of Trump supporters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Jacob Anthony Angeli Chansley, known as the QAnon Shaman, is seen at the Capital riots on Jan. 6, 2021. On January 9, Chansley was arrested on federal charges of "knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds without lawful authority, and with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump protest inside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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A Trump 2020 scarf lays on the ground outside of the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 7, 2021, a remnant of the riot on Wednesday.
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Trump supporters participate in a rally, Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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Police officers attempt to push back a pro-Trump mob trying to storm the U.S. Capitol following a rally with President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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A supporter of President Donald Trump leaves a note in the office of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi as he protests inside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C, January 6, 2021.
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A member of the Architect of the Capitol inspects a damaged entrance of the U.S. Capitol Jan. 7, 2021 in Washington.
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National Guard troops at the Capitol in Washington, which is surrounded by temporary security fencing, Jan. 13, 2021.
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Tear gas is fired at supporters of President Trump who stormed the United States Capitol building.
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A mob of Trump supporters climb the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021. The Capitol building was placed on lockdown, with senators and members of the House locked inside their chambers, as Congress began debating President-elect Joe Biden?s victory.
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A man is seen hanging from the balcony in the Senate Chamber on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Supporters of President Donald Trump enter the U.S. Capitol's Rotunda on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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A person photographs a noose erected across from the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, during a pro-Trump rally in Washington.
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Police with guns drawn watch as a mob of Trump supporters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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A protester holds a Trump flag inside the U.S./ Capitol Building near the Senate Chamber on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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A supporter of President Donald Trump wears a gas mask after storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Trump supporters participate in a rally Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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A member of the U.S. Capitol police rushes Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA) out of the House Chamber as protesters try to enter the House Chamber during a joint session of Congress on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Members of the National Guard rest in the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 13, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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A mob of Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021.
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A Congressional staffer holds his hands up while a Capitol Police Swat team checks everyone in the room as they secure the floor from Trump supporters in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as they push barricades to storm the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C on Jan. 6, 2021.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) gives a thumbs up at the Capitol in Washington on Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress prepares to meet and certify the 2020 Electoral College results. At left is Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.).
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U.S. Capitol Police install a metal detector at the doors of the House of Representatives Chamber, Jan. 12, 2021 in Washington, D.C. Security has been tightened ahead of next week's presidential inauguration.
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Dust and a gas mask are visible on the ground in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
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Trump supporters try to force their way through a police barricade in front of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, hoping to stop Congress from finalizing Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election.
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Riot police push back a crowd of supporters of President Donald Trump after they stormed the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
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A man takes a photo of broken windows near the Rotunda in the early morning hours of Thursday, Jan. 7, 2021, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington, on Wednesday.
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Pro-Trump demonstrators gather in front of the U.S. Capitol Building on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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The American flag is lowered to half-staff atop the U.S. Capitol Building, Jan. 8, 2021 following the death of U.S. Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick in Washington, D.C. The officer died after he was injured when a pro-Trump mob stormed and entered the Capitol Building on Wednesday.
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Trump supporters breach the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, before 30 or so House Democrats could be safely evacuated from the House gallery.
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A Capitol Police officer walks past a worker cleaning damage a day after a pro-Trump mob broke into the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 7, 2021, in Washington, D.C.
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Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., cleans up debris and personal belongings strewn across the floor of the Rotunda in the early morning hours of Jan. 7, 2021, after protesters stormed the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday.
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Trump supporters clash with police and security forces as people try to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021 in Washington.
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People shelter in the House gallery as protesters try to break into the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in Washington.
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Only about a quarter of the more than 1,300 people arrested in the assault on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, have faced the obstruction count, which is Section 1512(c)2 of the U.S. criminal code.
Among them is Kevin Lyons, a North Side HVAC repairman who was the first Chicagoan to be arrested on charges stemming from the Capitol riot, court records show.
Lyons was sentenced to 51 months in prison last year after being convicted in a stipulated bench trial of violating the obstruction law, as well as a handful of misdemeanors.
Court records show Lyons has appealed his conviction, alleging his lawyer did not properly inform him how to challenge the obstruction statute. A hearing on the appeal is scheduled for next month in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., court records show.
Lyons, 44, is serving his time at a federal prison in Milan, Michigan, and is due to be released in December 2026, records show. His attorney did not immediately return calls seeking comment.
Another case that could be overturned due to the high court’s ruling is that against Thomas Adams Jr., a Springfield man who pleaded guilty last year to charges alleging he stormed the floor of the U.S. Senate on Jan. 6 and later told a reporter outside the building it was a “really fun time.”
Adams was sentenced to 14 months behind bars and surrendered on Aug. 23, 2023. He was released in January pending his appeal of the constitutionality of the 1512(c)2 statute, records show.
Adams’ attorney also could not immediately be reached.
The Supreme Court’s ruling, meanwhile, returned the case of former Pennsylvania police Officer Joseph Fischer to a lower court to determine if Fischer can be charged with obstruction. Fischer has been indicted for his alleged role in disrupting Congress’ certification of Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential election victory over incumbent Donald Trump.
It’s unclear how the court’s decision will affect the criminal case against Trump in Washington, where the former president faces charges stemming from the insurrection, including obstruction. Special counsel Jack Smith has previously said the charges faced by the former president would not be affected.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the court’s opinion, joined by conservative Justices Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Clarence Thomas, and by liberal Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Reading the obstruction statute broadly “would also criminalize a broad swath of prosaic conduct, exposing activists and lobbyists to decades in prison,” Roberts wrote.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett dissented, along with Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.
Barrett, one of three justices appointed by Trump, wrote that the law clearly encompasses the events of Jan. 6. “The riot forced Congress to suspend the proceeding, delaying it for several hours,” she wrote.
In Lyons’ case, he admitted in a statement of facts that he publicly posted his car route from Chicago to Washington the day before the riot, writing, “I’m heading to DC to STOP THE STEAL.”
On Jan. 6, he recorded himself throughout the day and texted updates to others while weathering tear gas and flash-bangs as rioters broke into the building after a rally hosted by then-President Donald Trump, according to the statement.
“We’re storming the Capitol building,” he said, according to the statement. “I guess we’re all going to jail.”
He called the riot an “(expletive) revolution” as he ascended stairs to the Capitol’s Senate Wing doors, court records show. Once inside, the man goaded politicians hiding nearby while sharing chants with the mob.
“Nancy, where are you?” he said, referring to the California representative who then led the Democrat House majority.
He then found her ransacked office on the second floor and called out her name again, stopping to take a photo of the plaque outside the door, the statement said. He posted the photo to Instagram with the caption, “WHOS HOUSE?!?!? OUR HOUSE!!” but took it down after about an hour.
Inside Pelosi’s office, Lyons walked around and caught his own image reflected in a mirror, screenshots shared on the court recordsshow.He saw a gray, wool coat hanging from a coat rack as a news show on a television screen covered the mob storming the Capitol.
“Anyone need a coat?” he said.
According to court records, he reached into the coat’s pockets and pulled out a brown, leather wallet belonging to one of Pelosi’s staffers. The wallet contained about $50, a TSA PreCheck card, two bank cards and a driver’s license. Lyons never returned it, according to the statement.
Lyons entered Pelosi’s personal office next, the statement of facts said. There, he removed a framed photograph of Pelosi with the civil rights icon John Lewis, the late U.S. representative. He texted a friend a picture of the photograph to someone else, telling them he was now a felon.
“I took this off Pelosi’s (expletive) desk,” he said. He then snapped another picture of himself with the stolen photo as he left the Capitol in an Uber, according to the statement.
The photo was never found.
The Associated Press contributed.
jmeisner@chicagotribune.com
