Justice Department Prosecutors Laying Out Court Plans to Force Donald Trump's Inner Circle to Testify on January 6 Probe: Report

The Justice Department is reportedly preparing its court plans with its prosecutors to force former U.S. President Donald Trump's ally and inner circle members to testify regarding the January 6 probe.

Federal prosecutors were reported to be preparing for a legal battle for former Trump administration officials to testify, according to a Yahoo! News report.

The Justice Department is expecting the former president to claim executive privilege to shield evidence from the federal grand jury.

Two people familiar with the matter noted that investigators before a grand jury asked recent witnesses about conversations with Trump, his lawyers, and his allies.

Prosecutors have asked about meetings the former president held in December 2020 and December 2021, as well as Trump's attempts to convince former Vice President Mike Pence to not certify the election results.

The federal prosecutors have also asked the level to which Trump is implicated in his attorney's fake-elector scheme.

Justice Department January 6 Probe

Attorney General Merrick Garland noted publicly that the former president is "not beyond the reach of the investigation" just because of his former political position. Garland also said that the department is being cautious to "get this right," according to a CNN News report.

Prosecutors are still in the early stages of looking at any direct role Trump played.

U.S. President Joe Biden's administration has chosen not to assert privilege claims on the January 6 incidents.

Courts generally see executive privilege claims to be more easily cleared away in criminal investigations as compared to congressional probes.

No former president has been recorded to be criminally charged in U.S. history. However, Garland suggested that he has not ruled out indicting Trump for his role in the attack.

January 6 Probe

The House select committee investigating the incidents on January 6 showed that some of Trump's political aides said it was no time to declare victory. However, campaign manager Bill Stepien testified that they were not matched to some of the former president's more experienced political aides, like Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal lawyer who urged Trump to fight.

Trump also met with members of Congress who would reject the election results from their states, according to an Associated Press News report.

Rep. Liz Cheney, vice chair of the House select committee probing the January 6 Capitol riot, said that the president was told there was no voter fraud over and over again.

Trump also told the Capitol riot crowd that he will be there with them, adding that they were going to "walk down to the Capitol."

Rally organizer Kylie Kremer's text messages revealed that there were plans for a second stage to be set up outside the Capitol.

White House counsel Pat Cipollone also held off Trump from going to the Capitol, as he was worried it would be seen as the former president interfering with the 2020 election.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Justice Department Jan. 6 criminal probe focuses on Trump's actions leading up to insurrection - from CBS News