Appeals court overturns obstruction convictions after Jan. 6 ruling

A federal appeals court has overturned a nine-year prison sentence against a former federal agent who had a romantic relationship with a suspected terrorist in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling on obstruction charges for rioters at the Capitol on Jan. 6.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit concluded that former Naval Criminal Investigative Service agent Leatrice DeBruhl-Daniels’ obstruction of justice convictions could no longer be sustained after the Supreme Court ruled Criminal law had limited the scope of this punishment in June.

The panel found on October 11 that the federal government had provided “little support” to show that…