Of course, the House Judiciary Committee did pass impeachment articles, and one of them was contempt of Congress, which is a crime. However, impeachment articles only bring charges for removal from office. They aren't criminal. The Justice Department would have to go through the normal indictment process to bring criminal charges.
Would Nixon have actually been charged? I don't think Jimmy Carter would have done it. He called for national healing, and as a state politician, he didn't have a huge axe to grind with Nixon. However, suppose Ted Kennedy had won the 1976 election. He was very critical of the pardon and may very well have pursued criminal charges. (Interestingly, in later years, Kennedy admitted that he was wrong and that Ford had done the right thing.)
Last edited: Jul 24, 2016