US Supreme Court clears path for Steve Bannon criminal case dismissal

Bannon, an ally of US President Donald Trump, served a four-month prison sentence after his 2022 conviction for contempt of Congress.Published On 6 Apr 2026The United States Supreme Court has cleared the way for the Justice Department to move forward with dismissing a criminal case against Steve Bannon, a key ally of President Donald Trump, who was convicted after refusing to testify or provide documents to Congress despite being issued a subpoena.The department’s request to drop Bannon’s case was one of ‌multiple actions it has taken that have benefited allies and supporters of the Republican president since Trump returned to office last year.Bannon served a four-month prison sentence after being convicted in 2022 on two counts of contempt of Congress for refusing to provide documents or testify to the House committee investigating the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol by Trump supporters.Trump’s Justice Department, in urging the Supreme Court to toss the lower court’s decision, told the justices in court papers that it has determined that dismissing Bannon’s case “is in the interests of justice”. The department had already filed a motion to dismiss the case at the trial court level.Evan Corcoran, a lawyer for Bannon, welcomed the Supreme Court’s action on Monday.“It has been one battle after another for five years, but today the Supreme Court vacated an unjust conviction, and in doing so validated a fundamental rule – like oil and water, politics and prosecution don’t mix,” Corcoran said.A dismissal would remove Bannon’s conviction from the record, but would have little practical impact because he has already served his sentence.Who is Steve Bannon?Bannon, 72, served as a key adviser to Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and his chief White House strategist in 2017 during Trump’s first term in office before a falling out between them that was later patched up.