On Monday, January 27, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has reportedly fired “over a dozen” officials involved in special counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Donald Trump.
“Today, Acting Attorney General James McHenry terminated the employment of a number of DOJ officials who played a significant role in prosecuting President Trump,” a DOJ official told FOX News Digital. “In light of their actions, the Acting Attorney General does not trust these officials to assist in faithfully implementing the President’s agenda.”
During the administration of then-President Joe Biden and then-Vice President Kamala Harris, Smith and his colleagues were tasked with investigating Trump’s handling of sensitive documents and his actions on January 6, 2021. Ultimately, Smith and his colleagues determined they had obtained enough evidence to “obtain and sustain a conviction at trial,” but was unable to fully prosecute Trump due to the result of the “election and [his] imminent return to the Presidency.”
Since taking office earlier this month, Trump has pushed back against the DOJ’s handling of the chaos, riots and attempted insurrection attempt that captured the nation’s attention on January 6, 2021. Earlier this month, Trump issued “full, complete and unconditional” pardons to more than 1,500 people arrested in connection to the events of January 6, 2021. More recently, interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia reportedly issued a memo announcing a “special project” reviewing the department’s prosecutions in connection to January 6, 2021.
