The Justice Department has denied a request from House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan for sensitive information related to an ongoing investigation into classified documents found at President Joe Biden's home and a former office. In a letter, Assistant Attorney General Elizabeth Prelogar stated that disclosing non-public information could jeopardize investigations, violate statutory requirements, and interfere with the Department's ability to conduct its investigations. However, the Department has already provided the committee with a significant amount of information related to the investigation.
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The Justice Department has informed the Senate Intelligence Committee that it is actively working to brief lawmakers on the potential risks to national security posed by the discovery of classified documents in the possession of both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. The Department is working with the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to provide information without harming the ongoing Special Counsel investigations, and has a policy of maintaining the confidentiality of such information. The Biden administration has taken steps to ensure that all documents are properly secured and that personnel have the appropriate security clearances, but the potential risks to national security remain unclear.
The FBI has taken down the website of the notorious Hive ransomware group, which has extorted over $100 million from 1,300 companies worldwide. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that the Justice Department had dismantled the international ransomware network, following a hospital attack in October. The FBI is urging organizations to take steps to protect themselves from ransomware, and encouraging victims to report attacks to law enforcement.
Two former Arkansas law enforcement officers have been charged with civil rights violations for using excessive force during the arrest of Randal Worcester, which was captured on video and widely shared on social media. The incident has sparked a national conversation about police brutality and the use of excessive force by law enforcement officers. The findings of the investigation have been given to a special prosecutor, and it is unclear what the outcome of the case will be.
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has formed a new House subcommittee, led by Rep. Jim Jordan, to investigate the Justice Department, FBI, and other "Deep State" players. This move has been met with criticism from both sides of the aisle, and McCarthy has also threatened to deny Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar a seat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee. It remains to be seen whether McCarthy will be successful in his efforts, and how the subcommittee's investigations will unfold in the coming months.
Attorney General Merrick Garland has defended the Justice Department's handling of two separate special counsel investigations into classified documents linked to former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden. He has stated that the Department applies the same norms and practices to all, and is now grappling with a growing political nightmare due to the investigations targeting two presidents. In his first public remarks on the topic, Garland was asked whether he believed the Justice Department was handling the probes fairly, to which he responded that the Department has a set of norms and practices that are applied to all.
A jury in Washington, DC has found four members of the far-right militia group Oath Keepers guilty of seditious conspiracy in connection with the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack. This is the second major trial of far-right extremists accused of plotting to forcibly keep President Donald Trump in power, and the four men now face up to 20 years in prison. The Justice Department has charged more than 400 people in connection with the Capitol attack, and the convictions of the Oath Keepers are seen as a major victory in their efforts to hold those responsible accountable.
Former FBI counterintelligence official Charles McGonigal and former Russian diplomat Sergey Shestakov have been indicted on charges of violating U.S. sanctions and money laundering. The two are accused of working for Russian energy magnate Oleg Deripaska to investigate a rival Russian oligarch in 2021 and of failing to report their contacts with foreign officials to the FBI. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison.