Judge denies suspect’s January 6 bid to postpone the case after Trump’s victory

President-elect Donald Trump’s election victory has already begun to provoke requests from his supporters charged in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol for delays in their cases due to the possibility that they could be pardoned after Trump’s inauguration .

Lawyers for Christopher Carnell, a 21-year-old North Carolina defendant found guilty earlier this year of charges related to his participation in the attack on the Capitol, requested Wednesday morning that D.C. District Judge Beryl Howell postpone a hearing on the status of his case . case set to take place later this week, citing Trump’s previous promises to pardon his supporters.

“During his campaign, President-elect Trump made multiple promises of pardons to the January 6 defendants, especially those who participated nonviolently,” their filing said. “Mr. Carnell, who gained nonviolent entry into the Capitol as an 18-year-old on January 6, expects to be relieved of the criminal charges he currently faces when the new administration takes office.”

In an order Wednesday, Judge Howell denied Carnell’s request to postpone his status hearing.

The filing said Carnell’s lawyers had contacted Trump’s office to obtain more information “about the timing and expected scope of clemency actions relevant to his case.”

MORE: DC warns of potential violence and election uncertainty ahead of January 6

Federal prosecutors have charged more than 1,500 people across the country over the past four years for their roles in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, part of what the Justice Department has described as one of the largest criminal investigations in its history.

The DCUS attorney general has continued to arrest individuals on an almost daily basis, many of whom have been charged with violent attacks on police protecting the building.

In addition to Trump’s promises to pardon many of those who took part in the attack, it is widely expected that the ongoing criminal investigation will be dropped once Trump comes to power.

Judge denies defendant’s bid to postpone case to Jan. 6 after Trump’s victory originally appeared on abcnews.go.com