The US judiciary is demanding a six-month prison sentence for Steve Bannon, former adviser to President Trump. He was found guilty of contempt of the US House of Representatives in July awaiting sentencing. That will happen later this week.

Bannon was convicted for failing to appear when subpoenaed by the House Committee of Representatives to investigate the January 6, 2021, storming of the Capitol. He also refused to provide the committee with any documents that might help in the investigation.

The committee wanted to hear Bannon because he was in contact with President Trump the day before the Capitol riots. In a podcast that day, he said that protests over Trump’s election defeat “all hell would break loose.” The next day, without Presidential intervention, an angry mob stormed the Capitol, where the US House of Representatives is located.

Bannon had not held an official position with Trump for a long time. He served as an adviser early in Trump’s presidency but was fired in 2017.

Conditional Punishment

Bannon’s lawyers have asked for a suspended sentence, despite the fact that it is not legally possible. Both offenses for which he was convicted carry a minimum sentence of one month in prison. In addition to the prison sentence, the judiciary has also demanded a fine of $200,000. The judge will decide on Friday.

Bannon is also involved in a fraud affair. He is suspected of embezzling donations to build the US-Mexico border wall. That was a big campaign promise from Trump.

Trump himself was subpoenaed by the commission of inquiry into the Capitol riots last week. “He’s the person who takes center stage,” the Democratic leader said. “So we want to hear from him. He must be held accountable.”