A federal D.C. judge rejected former Trump adviser Peter Navarro‘s request to stay out of prison while he appeals his contempt of Congress charges.
Navarro was sentenced to four months in prison last month after being convicted in September on two counts of contempt of Congress — one for failing to produce documents related to the probe and another for skipping his deposition. (RELATED: Peter Navarro Sentenced To Prison Over Contempt Of Congress Charges)
According to The Hill, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ruled Thursday that Navarro’s forthcoming appeal does not raise a “substantial question of law,” giving him no reason to allow the Trump ally to remain free while the appellate process plays out.
“After over a year of litigation, Defendant still has not offered what he thinks is required for a proper invocation of executive privilege,” Mehta wrote.
Both parties tiptoed around the issue of executive privilege throughout the trial after Mehta barred defense attorneys from using it to prove Navarro’s innocence.
Mehta also rejected Navarro’s argument that he’s being politically prosecuted for his alignment with Trump.
“Defendant’s cynical, self-serving claim of political bias poses no question at all, let alone a ‘substantial’ one,” Mehta wrote.
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