The DOJ released Special Counsel Jack Smith’s report on the Trump election interference investigation.

The Department of Justice made the first volume public. Special counsel Jack Smith The final report on his now-closed investigation into President-elect Donald Trump, just days before he was sworn into office.

Attorney General Merrick Garland released the first volume, which focuses on the election case against Trump. Smith’s Tuesday’s midnight report on the back and forth in the federal court system.

An initial letter from Smith to Garland said it was “ridiculous” that Trump believed the Biden administration, or other political actors, influenced or directed his decisions as a prosecutor, saying That they are guided by the principles of federal prosecution.

“Trump’s cases represent people who are guilty. [was] “The most obvious, the public does the most harm, and the evidence the most certain,” Smith said, referring to the principles.

A federal judge blocked special counsel Jack Smith from issuing a final report

In the lengthy report, Smith said his office fully stood behind the decision to bring criminal charges against Trump because he “launched a series of criminal efforts to retain power” after losing the 2020 election. “What?”

Smith said in his closing that the parties were determining whether “any material in the superseding indictment is subject to presidential immunity” after it became clear that Trump had won the 2024 election. The department then determined that the case should be dismissed before taking office because of how it interprets the Constitution.

“The Department’s view that the Constitution prohibits impeachment and prosecution of the President is clear and does not alter the seriousness of the charges, the strength of the government’s evidence, or the merits of the prosecution, whose office is entirely behind “The report said.

Appeals court won’t block partial release of special counsel Jack Smith’s Trump report

Garland appointed former Justice Department official Jack Smith as special counsel in November 2022.

Smith, a former assistant U.S. attorney and chief of the DOJ’s public integrity section, led the investigation into Trump’s retention of classified documents after leaving the White House and whether the former president obstructed the federal government’s investigation into the matter. of

Smith was also tasked with overseeing an investigation into whether Trump or other officials and institutions interfered with the peaceful transition of power after the 2020 presidential election, including the confirmation of the Electoral College vote on January 6, 2021.

Smith indicted Trump in both cases, but Trump pleaded not guilty.

Flashback: Attorney General Garland names special counsel to investigate Trump on Mar-a-Lago documents, Jan. 6

The classified records case was dismissed in July 2024 by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, which ruled that Smith was illegally appointed as the special counsel.

Smith sued Trump in the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., in his 2020 election case, but after Trump was elected president, Smith sought to have the case dismissed. Judge Tanya Chitkin granted the request.

Flashback: Trump says he ‘will not participate’ in special counsel probe, calling it ‘justice politics at its worst’

That month, though, Cannon temporarily halted the release of Smith’s final report. A federal appeals court reversed his decision, allowing the Justice Department to make Smith’s report public.

i Classified records During the investigation, Smith charged Trump with 37 federal charges, including knowingly withholding national defense information, conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements. Trump pleaded not guilty.

Flashback: FBI said it had ‘probable cause’ to believe additional classified documents at Mar-a-Lago, according to affidavit

Trump was also charged with three additional counts as part of the indictment outside the investigation: one additional count of knowingly withholding national defense information and two additional counts of obstruction.

In the 2020 election case, Smith accused Trump of conspiring to defraud the United States. conspiracy to obstruct official action; Violation of official action; and conspiracy against rights. Trump pleaded not guilty.

The cases brought by Smith against Trump have never gone to trial in any jurisdiction.

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Despite efforts by Trump’s lawyers to block the release of the report, Attorney General Merrick Garland maintained that he would make at least one volume of Smith’s report public.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.