WASHINGTON — Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows won’t be indicted for defying subpoenas by the special congressional committee investigating the deadly Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol, a major blow to the panel as it seeks cooperation of associates of former President Donald Trump.
The Justice Department sent the Jan. 6 committee a letter notifying it that Meadows and Dan Scavino, Trump’s former deputy chief of staff, won’t be indicted for contempt because they have been cooperating, according to a person familiar with the matter who asked to remain anonymous speaking about a nonpublic matter.
Meadows became the highest-ranking former Trump official to face legal jeopardy tied to the investigation into efforts to stop the certification of Joe Biden as president. The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives made a criminal referral to the Justice Department in December in response to Meadows’ lack of cooperation. The House issued a criminal referral against Scavino in April.
