Former President Donald Trump is not immune from civil suits from members of Congress and Capitol police officers who allege he incited the deadly and destructive Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol, the Justice Department said Thursday.

In a brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, Justice Department lawyers argued that Trump was not shielded by presidential immunity and that the cases should proceed to a lower court for further examination.

"Speaking to the public on matters of public concern is a traditional function of the presidency, and the outer perimeter of the president's office includes a vast realm of such speech," the brief said. "But that traditional function is one of public communication. It does not include incitement of imminent private violence of the sort the district court found that plaintiffs' complaints have plausibly alleged here."

Two Capitol Police officers, James Blassingame and Sidney Hemby, and 11 members