John Eastman, JD – disclosure of documents related to January 6
https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/eastman-select-committee-order.pdf
John Eastman is a lawyer now associated with the Claremont Institute. He helped President Trump try to overthrow the election of Joe Biden.
The House January 6 Committee asked him to sit down for an interview on the events of January 6 and the lead up. During the interview, he pleaded his Fifth Amendment protections against self-incrimination 146 times. A witness is entitled to plead the 5th Amendment rights against self-incrimination if there is/might be/could be criminal conduct on his part for which he might be criminally charged. John Eastman also refused to provide 19,000 documents relevant to the Committee’s investigation; the 5th Amendment does not apply to disclosure of documents.
At the time of the incidents in question, John Eastman was a tenured law professor at Chapman University, prior to that he was the dean of their law school.
He proposed that Vice President Mike Pence over rule the certified election results for seven states and declare Donald Trump the victor of the 2020 Presidential election. He met with Vice President Pence and his counsel to press his proposal. He met with GOP state legislators and officials in seven states to present his proposal. He met with federal Representatives to present his proposal. He also addressed the Trump rally on January 6 to encourage the rally goers to pressure Mike Pence and their state Representatives and Senators to over turn the certified election results.
He resigned from Chapman after his involvement in the incidents of January 6 came to light.
He sued the school to prevent disclosure of his e-mails saying they were protected by attorney client privilege and attorney work product on behalf of his client, Donald Trump.
The court found 1) there was attorney client relationship between John Eastman and Donald Trump, 2) the privacy interests of John Eastman and Donald Trump should be protected, 3) however, documents related to their criminal conduct together were not protected from disclosure to the committee. All but 10 of the documents in dispute had therefore to be provided to the House January 6 Committee.
“The plan proposed by Dr. Eastman’s memo involve actions by the Vice President without recourse to the courts. The memo states explicitly: “[t]he main thing here is that Pence should do this without asking for permission—either from a vote of the joint session or from the Court.” Dr. Eastman only acknowledged the potential for litigation dismissively, mocking the idea of opponents challenging him in court. Litigation was never Dr. Eastman’s motivation for planning the events of January 6, perhaps because, as he conceded, his legal theories would be rejected “9-0” by the Supreme Court.” https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/eastman-select-committee-order.pdf
“The illegality of the plan was obvious. Our nation was founded on the peaceful transition of power, epitomized by George Washington laying down his sword to make way for democratic elections. Ignoring this history, President Trump vigorously campaigned for his Vice President to single-handedly determine the results of the 2020 election. As Vice President Pence stated, “no Vice President in American history has ever asserted such authority.” Every American—and certainly the President of the United States—knows that in a democracy, leaders are elected, not installed. With a plan this “BOLD,” President Trump knowingly tried to subvert this fundamental principle.”
“Based on the evidence, the Court finds it more likely than not that President Trump corruptly attempted to obstruct the Joint Session of Congress on January 6, 2021.” https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/eastman-select-committee-order.pdf
“Dr. Eastman’s views on the Electoral Count Act are not, as he argues, a “good faith interpretation” of the law; they are a partisan distortion of the democratic process. His plan was driven not by preserving the Constitution, but by winning the 2020 election:
[Dr. Eastman] acknowledged that he didn’t think Kamala Harris should have that authority in 2024; he didn’t think Al Gore should have had it in 2000; and he acknowledged that no small government conservative should think that that was the case.
Dr. Eastman also understood the gravity of his plan for democracy—he acknowledged “[y]ou would just have the same party win continuously if [the] Vice President had the authority to just declare the winner of every State.” https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/eastman-select-committee-order.pdf