Mo Brooks Asks for Immunity in a Capitol Insurrection Lawsuit
Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks is asking a federal judge to grant him immunity from a lawsuit accusing him of helping to incite violence at the U.S. Capitol, arguing he was performing his job duties when he spoke at a rally on Jan. 6.
In a Wednesday court filing, Brooks argued his speech was about the upcoming congressional certification of the 2020 presidential election results and thus related to his job as a congressman.
“Brooks’ Ellipse Speech quite clearly related to, and was in the context of, votes in Congress later on January 6, 2021 concerning whether Congress should accept or reject state electoral college vote submittals,” Brooks wrote. The court filing was a rebuttal to Department of Justice’s view that the event was a campaign event on behalf of then-President Donald Trump.
Brooks, now a candidate for U.S. Senate, has come under fire for telling the pro-Trump crowd, “today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass.” Brooks has maintained his words were intended to fire up the crowd for the next election cycle and were not advocating violence.
