A federal judge has rejected Donald Trump’s request to toss lawsuits accusing him of civil conspiracy and laying the legal responsibility for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot at the former president’s feet. District Court judge Amit Mehta said that he would not dismiss the suits and that it was “plausible” that Trump’s speech incited the violent mob attack. Mehta wrote, “The President’s January 6 Rally Speech can reasonably be viewed as a call for collective action.” Referring to Trump’s online invective against then-VP Mike Pence, Mehta added, “It is reasonable to infer that the President would have understood the impact of his tweet, since he had told rally-goers earlier that, in effect, the Vice President was the last line of defense against a stolen election outcome.” The plaintiffs in the suits include a dozen Democratic congressmen and multiple Capitol Police officers.
