(Washington) The man accused of trying to break into the White House Correspondents’ Dinner is seeking to prevent top officials from the Department of Justice from participating directly in his trial, arguing that they could be considered victims or witnesses in the case, creating a potential conflict of interest.
(Published yesterday at 14:59)
The acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and federal prosecutor Jeanine Pirro were attending the April 25 event at the Washington Hilton when Cole Tomas Allen allegedly breached a security checkpoint and fired a shotgun at a Secret Service agent.
In a document filed Thursday night, Allen’s lawyers argued that the involvement of Mr. Blanche and Ms. Pirro in decision-making related to the case creates at least the appearance of a conflict of interest.
“As this case moves closer to trial, the country and the world will continue to wonder: how can the American legal system allow a victim to prosecute an accused in a case involving them?” wrote defense attorneys Eugene Ohm and Tezira Abe.
“Both heard gunshots, which presumably forced them to take cover under tables with other occupants. They were quickly evacuated and later learned that law enforcement believed certain administration officials were the target,” the lawyers argued.
Pirro stated that her office would respond to the defense attorneys’ arguments in her own legal document.
“We will not tolerate individuals coming to the District of Columbia to engage in antidemocratic acts of political violence, and we will prosecute all such acts to the fullest extent of the law,” Pirro said in a statement.
Allen is scheduled to appear on Monday to answer charges brought by a grand jury in Washington on Tuesday.
These charges include the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump, a longtime friend of Pirro. Blanche previously served as Trump’s personal lawyer before joining the Justice Department last year.
Blanche declined to comment through a spokesperson, deferring all inquiries to Pirro’s office.
Allen is also accused of assaulting a federal law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon and faces two additional firearms-related charges. If convicted of only the attempted assassination charge, he could face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The Secret Service agent, who was struck in his bulletproof vest, fired five times with his weapon without hitting anyone. Allen, a 31-year-old from Torrance, California, was injured but not struck by a bullet.
