Tag Archives: DOJ

The Washington Post reports: The Justice Department’s Civil Division under President Biden is continuing the Trump-era push to represent the former president in a defamation lawsuit brought by author E. Jean Carroll, according to a Monday night appellate court filing. The lawsuit brought by Carroll — who accused Donald Trump two years ago of sexually assaulting her in the 1990s …

ABC News reports: The Justice Department has recovered some of the millions in ransom paid by Colonial Pipeline shortly after the company was hacked, according to a warrant unsealed Monday. The Colonial Pipeline hack was carried out by Darkside actors, the FBI said in brief statement days after the attack. The company’s CEO said last month in an interview that …

The New York Times reports: In Donald J. Trump’s final weeks in office, Mark Meadows, his chief of staff, repeatedly pushed the Justice Department to investigate unfounded conspiracy theories about the 2020 presidential election, according to newly uncovered emails provided to Congress, portions of which were reviewed by The New York Times. In five emails sent during the last week …

Via press release from the Justice Department: A Florida couple was sentenced to prison today for their participation in a scheme to file four fraudulent loan applications seeking more than $1.1 million in forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) loans guaranteed under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Latoya Stanley, 38, and …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Department of Justice is elevating investigations of ransomware attacks to a similar priority as terrorism in the wake of the Colonial Pipeline hack and mounting damage caused by cyber criminals, a senior department official told Reuters. Internal guidance sent on Thursday to U.S. attorney’s offices across the country said information about ransomware investigations in the field …

Via press release from the Justice Department: A federal grand jury in Billings, Montana, returned an indictment on May 20 charging a Montana man with hate crime and firearm violations for allegedly firing a gun into an individual’s house and threatening the individual with violent, homophobic slurs. According to court documents, John Russell Howald, 44, of Basin, is charged with …

The Washington Post reports: Lawyers for the Justice Department urged a federal judge on Friday to dismiss lawsuits against former president Donald Trump, former attorney general William P. Barr and other officials for last June’s violent clearing of demonstrators from Lafayette Square by U.S. military and police. Trump and other U.S. officials are immune from civil lawsuits over police actions …

The Hill reports: The Department of Justice is reportedly preparing to sue luxury Las Vegas casino developer Steve Wynn in order to force him to register as a foreign lobbyist over allegations that he attempted to lobby Trump administration officials to obtain a diplomatic favor for China. The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that people familiar with the matter said …

Via press release from the Justice Department: Brian Christopher King (62, Interlachen) has pleaded guilty to transmitting communications in interstate commerce that contained threats to injure the person of another. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been set. According to the plea agreement, in March 2020, King placed two telephone …

Axios reports: A little-noticed line in a recent criminal filing suggests federal prosecutors consider a popular political fundraising tactic to be legally questionable. Fundraisers often boast of “5x” or other contribution matches to coax small-dollar donations. The Justice Department indicated in a court filing Monday this could amount to “material misrepresentations” if, as critics often contend, there’s no evidence the …

The Associated Press reports: The U.S. Department of Justice expressed concern Wednesday about ballot security and potential voter intimidation arising from the Republican-controlled Arizona Senate’s unprecedented private recount of the 2020 presidential election results in Maricopa County. In a letter to GOP Senate President Karen Fann [photo], the head of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said the Senate’s farming …

Via press release from the Justice Department: A Minnesota man pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to provide material support and resources, namely property, services and weapons, to what he believed was Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization, for use against Israeli and U.S. military personnel overseas. According to court documents, Michael Solomon, 31, of New Brighton, Minn., was a member …

The Associated Press reports: The owner of a Massachusetts pizza parlor lied about the number of employees he had to fraudulently obtain more than $660,000 in federal coronavirus relief funds, then used some of the money to buy and stock an alpaca farm in Vermont, federal prosecutors said Tuesday. Dana McIntyre, 57, of Grafton, Vermont, was arrested Tuesday and charged …

The Washington Post reports: Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to appoint an outside lawyer to review the records seized from Rudolph W. Giuliani — echoing the Justice Department’s pursuit of a criminal case against a previous attorney for former president Donald Trump, Michael Cohen. In a letter unsealed Tuesday, federal prosecutors in Manhattan asked U.S. District Judge J. Paul …

Politico reports: A federal judge has ordered the release of a key Justice Department memo supporting former Attorney William Barr’s conclusion that former President Donald Trump should not be prosecuted for obstruction of justice over episodes investigated by special counsel Robert Mueller. U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued that ruling in a withering opinion that accused Barr of …

Reuters reports: The U.S. Justice Department has repealed a policy put in place during Donald Trump’s presidency that cut off hundreds of millions of dollars in grants to sanctuary cities that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. In an internal memo seen by Reuters, acting head of the Office of Justice Programs Maureen Henneberg said that prior grant recipients, including …

The Associated Press reports: The Justice Department is opening a sweeping probe into policing in Louisville, Kentucky over the March 2020 death of Breonna Taylor, who was shot to death by police during a raid at her home, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Monday. It’s the second such sweeping probe into a law enforcement agency by the Biden administration in …

CNN reports: Former President Donald Trump’s continued promotion of the “big lie” about the 2020 election could still incite his followers to violence, the Justice Department and judges noted repeatedly this week, as courts weigh the future dangerousness of US Capitol riot defendants. Two federal judges this week brought up the disinformation about 2020 from right-wing figures, and even Trump …

Via press release from the Justice Department: A federal grand jury in Miami has returned an indictment charging a Florida man — Mark Grenon, 62 — and his three sons — Jonathan Grenon, 34, Jordan Grenon, 26, and Joseph Grenon, 32 — with fraudulently marketing and selling “Miracle Mineral Solution,” a toxic industrial bleach, as a cure for COVID-19, cancer, …

NBC News reports: The Justice Department has notified federal judges in Washington that it expects to charge more than 500 people with taking part in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. “Over 400 individuals have been charged in connection with the Capitol attack,” federal prosecutors said in court documents filed late Thursday. “The investigation continues and the government …