Supreme Court paves way for Steve Bannon contempt case to be dismissed

The Supreme Court paved the way for the Trump administration to dismiss the criminal case against Trump ally Steve Bannon.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday paved the way for the Trump administration to dismiss the criminal case against Trump ally Steve Bannon over his failure to respond to congressional subpoenas.

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Although Bannon was convicted and served jail time, he and the Trump administration are now seeking to have the case thrown out after the fact, in what would be a mostly symbolic outcome.

Acting on Bannon's appeal of his conviction, the court sent the case back to a district court judge in Washington, wiping out an appeals court ruling that upheld the jury verdict. In February, the Trump administration, which took over the case from the Biden administration, said it planned to dismiss the case after concluding it was "in the interests of justice." Such a move would toss out the conviction.