WASHINGTON — Federal prosecutors moved to dismiss a felony assault charge this week and will instead seek to prosecute a Maryland attorney accused of spitting on National Guardsmen under a local misdemeanor statute.

Scott Pichon was charged last month with felony assault for allegedly spitting on members of the National Guard while riding a scooter at Union Station. On Monday, prosecutors asked a federal judge to dismiss that charge without prejudice. A day later, prosecutors filed a misdemeanor case against Pichon in D.C. Superior Court with the same allegations.

The filing did not explain why prosecutors sought to downgrade the charge from a felony and Benjamin Schifflebein, an assistant federal public defender representing Pichon, said U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office had not ans

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