Various news outlets have the story this morning that Michael Sherwin, the federal prosecutor who led the criminal investigation into the Capitol riot, said that evidence in the probe is “trending” toward sedition charges.

According to a report published on TheHill.com:

When Pelley asked if he anticipates sedition charges against some of the defendants, Sherwin responded, “I believe the facts do support those charges.”

“And I think that, as we go forward, more facts will support that,” he continued.

Sedition charges those who conspire to “oppose by force the authority” of the government or use force “to prevent, hinder or delay the execution of any law of the United States.”

The Justice Department has not pursued sedition charges since 2010, when prosecutors alleged that members of a Michigan militia tried to plan an armed conflict with the government, according to The New York Times. Prosecutors were ultimately unsuccessful with the charge in that case, with the judge ruling they didn’t properly show a “concrete” argument of sedition.

Evidence

Probably never before in history has so much evidence been provided by the perpetrators themselves. The only real problem with this evidence is that there is so much of it.

In an earlier post we wrote about how private citizens have published a site that cross references videos sent to Parler by the rioters to the timeline of the event as well as a map of the Capitol.

An additional trove of information has been made available by the non-profit investigative newsroom, ProPublica. This agency has put up hundreds of videos shot by the insurrectionists, again cross referenced by time and general location. Click here to view this library.

We must say, as does ProPublica, that some of these are hard to watch. But they are important.

We witnessed on live TV an attempt to overthrow the constitutional structure of this country. But as we know, what is reported on TV and in media outlets does not constitute evidence.

The videos, stills, texts and other messages provided by the insurrectionists is another matter.

When this matter comes to trial, it will be one of the most important trials, or series of trials, in the history of the country. And it must come to trial. There is no option.