Thread by @dsamuelsohn

NEW: Defense lawyers for members of the Jan 6 pro-Trump mob are using an email listserv where they compare notes on a deluge of criminal cases that federal prosecutors have described as "unprecedented." ($) by ⁦@cryanbarber⁩ ⁦@thisisinsider⁩ businessinsider.com/capitol-attack…

The listserv has provided a forum for the diffuse network of lawyers in the federal public defender's office in Washington, DC, along with the many dozens of court-appointed counsel and others who have been privately retained by accused Capitol rioters.

But emails obtained by Insider show that, like with almost any listserv, things can also get tense.
In recent weeks, the listserv — created by the federal public defender's office—  has featured complaints about prosecutors seeking restitution payments to help repair the Capitol.

In early July, some on the listserv questioned whether defense lawyers should be banished if their clients plead guilty and agree to cooperate with the government.
"There's a lot of grousing about the prosecutors," one of the defense lawyers told @thisisinsider

In interviews, lawyers for the accused insurrectionists told Insider that email traffic over the listserv has been steady and only occasionally helpful, sometimes shedding light on how the Justice Department is approaching plea deals.

One of the lawyers said it has opened a line of communication between the federal public defender's office and far afield attorneys who were appointed or hired to represent accused members of the pro-Trump mob.

In 1 email, a lawyer shared how prosecutors indicated people who stepped on Senate floor should expect a felony conviction w/ plea deals, per 3 listserv members. The message deflated hopes among some defense lawyers for negotiating pleas to lower-level misdemeanor charges.

Check out the full story here: businessinsider.com/capitol-attack…