New DOJ: Failure to grant dept access to Jan 6 cmte. witness transcripts complicates investigations

[bigtree]

“The Select Committee’s failure to grant the Department access to these transcripts complicates the Department’s ability to investigate and prosecute those who engaged in criminal conduct in relation to the January 6 attack on the Capitol,” DOJ wrote in a letter Wednesday, signed by Assistant Attorneys General Kenneth Polite, Jr. and Matthew Olsen, as well as U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves.

The DOJ officials said it was “critical” that the panel provide prosecutors “copies of the transcripts of all its witness interviews.”

Prosecutors agreed Thursday to delay a scheduled August trial of the leadership of the Proud Boys, a pro-Trump militia group, citing the “prejudice” caused by the select committee’s public hearings, which are ongoing for much of this month. The leaders are facing seditious conspiracy charges for their activities on Jan. 6. The proposed trial delay to December — backed by some defendants — would require the approval of the federal judge handling the case.

In addition to the transcript dispute, prosecutors are facing increasing complaints from defense attorneys that the Jan. 6 panel releasing selected details of their investigation — including in currently ongoing public hearings — is unfair to their clients. They are demanding access to all the records and have expressed concerns that they might all be abruptly made public right in the middle of a Proud Boys trial.

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/06/16/tensions-escalate-as-doj-renews-request-for-jan-6-panel-transcripts-00040267

Link to tweet

DOJ letter: https://www.politico.com/f/?id=00000181-6db4-d7aa-abab-6db4b86d0000

[Lovie777]

1. Apparently the 6th committee don't trust the DOJ.....

There are still leftovers from shithole's administration.

[bigtree]

8. they don't deserve that. These are the people actually moving the Proud Boys through court

...they had a trial date for a senior member of the Proud Boys set for August, but they had to agree to postpone until December, because relevant evidence is being withheld, shown, nonetheless, on television, which both the prosecution and defense say they need to proceed.

You have Adam Schiff repeatredly chastizing the DOJ for not acting, but the committee he's on is hampering those efforts in actual court hearings, and in grand juries, as well.

And these DOJ prosecutors aren't some reluctant trumpies dragging themselves into court without a care about winning cases. They are actively doing what Congress is rightfullly talking about. I'm not sure the committee actually appreciates the DOJ's role, responsibilities, and challenges when they advance these perps through court-based objections and certification of evidence, especially, in this case, in discovery.

If the committee wants DOJ to actually use the evidence they're providing (in court cases and grand juries operating right now), they need to make that evidence available to prosecutors. It's that simple.

[orleans]

26. i don't understand what the big fucking deal is RIGHT NOW with the doj

why didn't they ask for some of this shit three months or two months ago?

they have to blow this up for the one/two/or three week period this committee is presenting to america what was going on and leading up to 1/6?

they sound like they're just crusin for distracting from the committee and maybe looking for an excuse not to prosecute some of those people

what i don't understand is what if there wasn't a jan 6 committee?

then whatever the hell would the doj do without all those transcripts? maybe have to do their own interviews?

[ColinC]

2. One of the most important questions is why does the committee not trust the doj with the transcripts

[onenote]

3. On what basis do you think its a matter of not "trusting" DOJ

[ColinC]

4. On the basis they haven't provided the requested transcripts to the DOJ.

[onenote]

6. And "not trusting" them is the only possible reason?

[ColinC]

7. I think it is the most likely.

What's your guess?

[onenote]

9. It would only be a guess.

But its interesting that a lot of folks (both here and on the Select Committee) were with Chaiman Thompson when he indicated the Committee wouldn't be making criminal referrals to DOJ. How would DOJ proceed on criminal referrals without the relevant information from the Committee.

DOJ apparently is prosecuting people, is pursuing grand jury investigations. So why wouldn't it need, want, and expect the relevant information from the Committee.

Back to my guess -- its because, at this point during the proceedings, the Committee, for political reasons, doesn't want to be perceived as an arm of the DOJ.

[fightforfreedom]

10. Here's a guess.

Maybe the committee wants to finish their hearings before they turn over any evidence. Nothing wrong with that.

[OnDoutside]

13. Good guess, Thompson has already stated that.

[ColinC]

17. Yeah I had to google it before realizing that is the reason.

Clearly it does make sense for an investigation to stay within a specific scope -shared with a limited group, until complete.

[OnDoutside]

19. Yes, they've one shot at this before the midterms, and it's going well so far.

[onetexan]

24. +1 K&R

[JohnSJ]

5. Fair question

[bigtree]

11. it's foolhardy, whatever the cause

...DOJ not only is concerned about duplicating witness statements with their own stream of depositions and testimony, they need to know of conflicting testimony before they present their cases in court.

There shouldn't be some inplication, as some have made, that there's something Congress should be concerned with about DOJ prosecutors, as if they're going to advance prosecutions by containing evidence indefinitely in their mostly consequence-free hearings.

They've agreed to release them in Septenber. Question really is, why not now?

[OnDoutside]

12. It's only foolhardy if you believe that any of the main players will see the

inside of a cell, ever.

There's an opinion out there that handing over what the DOJ have asked for would lead to potential comprising of the J6C, as there are Republicans within the DOJ who they do not trust. Thompson has already stated they will release the documents when they're finished with them.

There's far more benefit to the American people by the J6C giving this the best effort it can, than expecting any of the main players going inside. Especially with the midterms coming up.

[bigtree]

15. convoluted nonsense

...this is President Biden's Justice Dept.

'Opinions' which are nothing more than conspiracy theories about republicans in the DOJ is a dangerously cynical game. No one should fall for it.

Discouraging prosecutions which are already proceeding, for any reason, is the opposite of beneficial. Holding back evidence as DOJ brings cases to actual trial is just negligent.

[OnDoutside]

18. Lol, it's Merrick Garland's Justice Department. Where were you for the last 6 years ? !!!

Those potential prosecutions will stand or fall on their own merits. The J6C judge that it is in their interests that they shouldn't hand over documents until their work is done, and I'm happy with that based on the clusterfuck that is the DOJ's track record over the last 6 years, when it comes to those close to power. Aside from the DOJ, and case brought could be before a Trumpist judge and/or Trumpist juror(s). We've already seen that in Manafort's trial.

[bigtree]

20. that's not really an argument

...it's just uninformed nonsense.

[OnDoutside]

22. Cry harder, pal.

[bigtree]

23. why would I be crying?

...the sky isn't falling where I'm sitting.

[OnDoutside]

27. The anger emanating from your posts would suggest otherwise, but that's good to know.

[Scrivener7]

14. Maybe they should have started those trials sooner if the 1/6 committee's hearings are

creating complications in their trials.

And what is stopping the DOJ from interviewing the subjects they need info for?

[bigtree]

16. those prosecutions are perpetually delayed by legal challenges to standing, privilege

...and other defense allowances on the way to trial.

That's not an actual point.

The problem with duplicating testimony is that it must be consistent. Makes little sense for DOJ to allow their prosecutions to be blindsided by Congress-obtained depositions, and it makes even less sense to have to conduct their own which may conflict with what Congress is putting out in the public.

Not understanding the reason for the committee denying the people who actually have the job of obtaining convictions relevant evidence requested for MONTHS. Congress has deliberately made DOJ's job harder like they're some adversary, instead of the branch we depend on to met out justice.

Makes no goddamn sense the way they're alternately bashed for not doing more, then jeered and when they tell us what they need to proceed.

This is the Biden Justice Dept, and Congress need to stop treating them like an opponent, especially as they're doing the actual work of convicting the people the committee is informing us about.

[Novara]

21. No kidding

I don't know why the DOJ is being blamed here, except that people just LOVE to bash the DOJ. They're doing their job!

The committee is slowing them down. People here have been screaming that the "DOJ is doing nothing!" Well, they're not doing nothing, are they? Will those who said that admit they're wrong?

I frankly would like to hear a really good reason why the committee is holding up the DOJ. A GOOD reason. Surely they have some evidence they can turn over?

[NewsCenter28]

25. They're doing nothing against the ones that actually matter

At least that is how it appears. It's disgusting really to go after the common citizen, who was mislead by leaders they trust, and not dare touch the leaders that actually ruined all of these regular people's lives.

Also, why does Merrick Garland have one standard of justice for Trump and his cronies, and another standard of justice for the people who Trump enlisted to serve in his coup army? It's like prosecuting all the Russian privates in Ukraine for Putin's war crimes but deeming Putin, himself, untouchable.

I would bet my house, my car, my entire life savings, my health and both arms that Merrick Garland never brings an indictment against Donald J. Trump.

[librechik]

28. Once J6 turns the transcripts over, they no longer control the narrative.

For everyone here, we have to trust that it's VERY IMPORTANT for this short period of time, to control what America is seeing and hearing. The election is this November. WE must. It is THE TRUTH. And we won't get another chance.

Of course we would like to assist DOJ with prosecutions. But once they have it and we don't, the investigation will disappear. And nobody wants that. Why should we trust them again? I don't remember.