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The acting head of the Justice Department proceeded with the dismissal of more than a dozen officials and career attorneys who had been involved in the prosecution efforts against President Donald Trump under former special counsel Jack Smith. The removal occurred after Trump’s victory over Vice President Kamala Harris in the November election.
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Fox News Digital reported that Acting Attorney General James McHenry issued letters to the prosecutors, attributing their termination to an inability to be trusted in implementing the president’s agenda. According to a DOJ official, the letters were transmitted via email to the affected individuals.
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During a segment on Tuesday, a network legal analyst emphasized that participation in a special counsel’s team remains voluntary, with prosecutors typically having a personal stake in securing convictions. The dismissals were perceived as an indication that the prosecutors were not regarded as impartial enforcers of the law under the new administration’s leadership.
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A specific count of the terminated officials was not provided, as a list of names had not been released. However, a DOJ official confirmed to Fox News that multiple individuals with substantial involvement in the prosecution of President Trump had been relieved of their duties. The decision was characterized as a step toward ending the perceived weaponization of the Justice Department.
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The reassignment of more than a dozen officials to a Sanctuary City task force and other initiatives had been initiated in the first week of the Trump administration. The latest dismissals were seen as aligning with the president’s broader objective of restructuring the federal government’s approach to law enforcement.
In November 2022, Jack Smith was named special counsel by former Attorney General Merrick Garland. Smith oversaw investigations into President Trump’s handling of secret documents and possible obstruction of the federal probe while he was employed in the DOJ’s public integrity department. Smith also has jurisdiction over an investigation into activities pertaining to the certification of the 2020 Electoral College vote.
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Charges had been brought against Trump in both cases, though pleas of not guilty had been entered. In July 2024, U.S. District Court Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the classified records case, ruling that Smith’s appointment had been unauthorized.
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In the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., charges related to the 2020 election had also been pursued. However, following Trump’s election, Smith sought to dismiss the case, a motion granted by Judge Tanya Chutkan.
Meanwhile, a federal judge reversed a prior order that had prohibited Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and seven other members of the group from entering Washington, D.C., without court approval. The decision followed Trump’s commutation of their sentences related to the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta, who presided over the Oath Keepers conspiracy trials, vacated the restriction, citing the impropriety of modifying sentences post-commutation. Acknowledgment was given to the fact that, although the original non-custodial sentences remained in place, enforcement had effectively been nullified following Trump’s intervention.