Flynn sues Jan. 6 panel to block access to phone records, testimony

Source: The Hill | December 22, 2021 | Rebecca Beitsch

Former Trump national security advisor Michael Flynn is suing to block the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack from subpoenaing his phone records along with other documents and his testimony.

Flynn did not appear for his scheduled deposition Monday, filing the late Tuesday suit challenging the committee’s subpoena for his Verizon phone records. The suit also notes that Flynn planned to plead the Fifth.

The suit details a breakdown in communication with the committee after months of negotiations, with the Flynn team frustrated by a refusal to narrow the scope of its request, with Flynn’s attorney arguing litigation is needed to stymy any criminal contempt of Congress charges the committee might pursue.

“Committee counsel responded that the Committee’s preference would be for General Flynn to invoke his 5th Amendment privilege before the Committee, even if it was effectively the only thing he could do, and that the Committee could refer General Flynn for prosecution for contempt of Congress for not doing so,” Flynn’s attorney, Matthew Sarelson, wrote in the 42-page filing.

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Telecommunications companies typically alert users when their data has been requested.

While the suit challenges the seizure of Flynn’s phone records, it claims subpoenas were also sent to  members of his family, “issuing one or more subpoenas to their telecommunications and electronic mail providers.”

It also includes a full copy of the items the committee wished to discuss with Flynn, including not only his discussions with the White House about the potential to seize Dominion voting machines, but also any communications he had with former President Trump and John Eastman.

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  • Consistent December 22, 2021 at 10:43 am #51235

    Consistent December 22, 2021 at 1:08 pm #51236


    Flynn is a crucial target of the Jan. 6 committee’s investigation. He attended a Dec. 18, 2020, meeting in the Oval Office with Trump during which Flynn reportedly discussed deploying the military to seize voting machines in service of Trump’s effort to stave off defeat. That conversation came amid increasing indications that Trump was considering invoking the Insurrection Act amid his effort to remain in power.

    Trump ultimately opted against taking that step, but many of those who violently attacked the Capitol anticipated he would, and cited this possibility as part of their calculus in participating in the riot.

    Consistent December 23, 2021 at 2:41 pm #51250


    A federal judge on Wednesday dismissed former national security adviser Michael Flynn’s lawsuit against the House Jan. 6 select committee for failing to follow procedural rules in filing his case, but said he would have an opportunity to make corrections and re-submit it to the court.

    U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven said in an order issued just one day after the lawsuit was filed that, among other things, Flynn’s lawyers failed to show that there was an imminent need for the court to intervene against a set of subpoenas from the select committee aimed at the retired general and his phone provider.

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