Three prosecutors in Capitol riot cases suddenly fired in US
Kyiv • UNN
The US Department of Justice fired prosecutors in cases related to the Capitol riots. This decision by the Donald Trump administration raised concerns about the independence of the department.
The US Department of Justice on Friday dismissed at least three prosecutors involved in criminal cases related to the riot at the US Capitol. This is another move by the administration of US President Donald Trump, aimed at prosecutors involved in cases of participants in the January 6, 2021 attack, writes UNN with reference to AP.
Details
Among those dismissed are two prosecutors who served as supervisors, overseeing the January 6 case in the US Attorney's office in Washington. Also among those dismissed is another prosecutor who handled investigations in cases related to the Capitol attack, sources said. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personnel matters.
A letter received by one of the prosecutors was signed by US Attorney General Pam Bondi. The letter did not state the reason for the dismissal, which was effective immediately, but only referred to "Article II of the Constitution of the United States and the laws of the United States," according to a copy obtained by the Associated Press.
The dismissals marked another wave of actions that raised alarm about the Trump administration's disregard for protecting the rights of civil servants for professional lawyers and undermining the Justice Department's independence from the White House. The Justice Department leadership also fired employees who worked on prosecutions against Trump and demoted a number of career executives, which was seen as an attempt to purge the agency of lawyers deemed insufficiently loyal, the publication writes.
Trump's pardons for January 6 rioters raised concerns about actions taken against prosecutors involved in the mass prosecution of more than 1,500 Trump supporters who stormed the Capitol as lawmakers gathered to certify President Joe Biden's election victory. Trump pardoned or commuted the sentences of all of them on his first day back in the White House, releasing from prison people convicted of seditious conspiracy and violent assaults on police.
During his tenure as interim US Attorney in Washington, Ed Martin in February demoted several prosecutors involved in January 6 cases, including a prosecutor who served as head of the so-called "Capitol Siege Section." Among others demoted were two prosecutors who helped secure convictions for seditious conspiracy against Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes and former Proud Boys national chairman Enrique Tarrio.
In January, then-acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Beauvais ordered the dismissal of about two dozen prosecutors who had been hired to temporarily serve on January 6 cases, but who had been transferred to permanent positions after Trump's victory in the November presidential election. Beauvais stated that he would not "tolerate subversive personnel actions of the previous administration."
Addition
Four leaders of Proud Boys, pardoned after the January 6 riots, have filed a lawsuit against the US government demanding $100 million. They accuse the government of violating their constitutional rights.