Meanwhile, lawsuits against Trump for 2021 Capitol attack continue

 Four years to the day after the insurrection at the US Capitol, lawsuits based on the events of January 6, 2021, continue to be heard in court.

A federal judge held a procedural hearing on eight cases where Democratic members of Congress and US Capitol Police officers are trying to hold President-elect Donald Trump accountable for the impact of the violent mob during the electoral certification of the 2020 election.

Both sides called into court via phone Monday morning to discuss with a judge in Washington how evidence is being collected from Trump’s side. Trump himself didn’t take part.

Trump’s attorneys are trying to limit the lawsuits based on his claims of presidential immunity.

The significance of the January 6 date also didn’t come up at the hearing. But Judge Amit Mehta of the DC District Court discussed with plaintiffs’ lawyers and Trump’s private attorneys the extent to which they can ask the incoming president written questions as the courts look at the breadth of immunity Trump will receive in the cases.

The trial-level court has months of work ahead of it for the lawsuits, as well as several potential appeals in the cases. On deck currently are questions of how far Trump’s official actions as president protect him from any civil fallout.

Following the hearing, one of the groups representing Capitol Police officers in the cases before Mehta noted the date.

“With the criminal proceedings ending, pardons likely, and with the political process shifting its gaze elsewhere, our civil rights lawsuit stands as one of the last opportunities to deliver justice for our clients,” said a statement from the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.