Report: Schock in court to fend off civil contempt allegations

Former Rep. Aaron Schock appeared in court this week to try to fend off a potential civil contempt citation over allegations that he has failed to comply with a subpoena demanding campaign and congressional documents.

The Illinois Republican and his lawyer, George Terwilliger of McGuireWoods, appeared in a two-day hearing before U.S. District Judge Sue Myerscough in Springfield about whether Schock should be penalized in the case, Sharon Paul, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois confirmed.


Terwilliger and prosecutors have until Friday to file requests about whether court records from the civil contempt case should be redacted before they become unsealed. The Illinois-based Journal Start first reported the hearing Wednesday afternoon.

Schock and federal prosecutors are fighting over what campaign and congressional documents he must produce as part of the federal criminal investigation.

Schock’s lawyer George Terwilliger told POLITICO that they reached an agreement to put the contempt charge on hold. Schock also received an “production of immunity letter,” which means that by turning over more documents to the government he doesn’t authenticate the records or provide testimony about the records.

Schock has 30 days to produce records that are in his possession and if he does so the contempt charge will likely be dropped. Schock has already produced thousands of pages of documents federal prosecutors are seeking.

Still outstanding is an issue regarding Schock’s campaign and official House records, which continues to be litigated, according to Terwilliger.

“In the proceedings before the court this week, we were seeking to secure former Congressman Aaron Schock’s constitutional rights in connection with a grand jury investigation,” Terwilliger said. “We are very pleased that we reached an agreement with the government that protects Mr. Schock’s rights as we complete the task of making available thousands of pages of documents.”

Members often invoke the Constitution’s “speech-or-debate” privilege, which protects members and staff from legal action over legitimate legislative actions. Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) is fighting with prosecutors over the same issue in his corruption case.

Paul confirmed that the hearing started out as a “closed” session, but was later opened to the public. Court documents currently remain sealed, but could become public once the judge rules on potential redactions.

Schock resigned from Congress in March after POLITICO raised questions about tens of thousands of federal dollars he received for mileage reimbursements for use of his personal vehicle. In June, FBI agents seized boxes from Schock’s Springfield, Illinois, campaign office, and several of Schock’s former aides have testified before a grand jury investigating Schock’s handling of taxpayer money.