Scoop: FBI Director Kash Patel wants to shrink his general counsel's office, as tensions escalate with bureau's chief legal adviser. OGC is pushing early retirement to reduce staff, but has contemplated terminations. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Профиль
Ben Penn
Профиль VivelyBloomberg Law reporter covering the Justice Department Bpenn@bloombergindustry.com Signal: benpenn.06
NEW: Justice Dept. claimed indictments are up under fiery Trump loyalist leader in Las Vegas, Sigal Chattah. Our analysis of DOJ’s own case data showed the opposite. My dive with Owen Auston-Babcock: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
I went long on a new form of Trump DOJ turmoil: Top Las Vegas prosecutor Sigal Chattah repeatedly bypassed Main Justice recusal orders, pushed cases for ex-clients & friends, targeted political foe, & much more. "It's charitable to call it chaos." news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Now official: DOJ files motion to dismiss indictment of alleged crypto fraudster. Associate DAG Aakash Singh tells judge DOJ “decided, in its prosecutorial discretion, not to devote further resources” news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Scoop: Trump DOJ to drop charges for alleged $722M crypto Ponzi schemer, just before trial. BitClub mastermind said he'd built scam on backs of "idiots" & "sheep." He hired Trump-connected lawyers to lobby DOJ HQ for relief, overruling NJ prosecutors. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
NEWS: Trump DOJ is quietly recruiting prosecutors to join a public corruption initiative inside the new Fraud Division that'll target state officials like Tim Walz for failing to prevent schemes, ramping up probes of blue state leaders ahead of midterms news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
JUST IN: Roger Rogoff, court-appointed US attorney in Seattle who Trump immediately fired, has sued to regain his post. The novel challenge takes aim at White House authority to bypass judiciary & Senate in choosing prosecutors news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
ICYMI - Trump admin. brings on a new top prosecutor in EDVA, Theo Stamos, who last fall was leading Va. state AG's effort to investigate a retired college professor for protesting outside Stephen and Katie Miller's home.
Ben PennNews: DOJ installs new head of embattled Eastern Dist. of Va. US atty's office that charged Trump enemies under Halligan. Interesting pick - Theo Stamos was Dem elected as Arlington's top prosecutor. Since 2019, she appears to have veered toward MAGA: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
News: DOJ installs new head of embattled Eastern Dist. of Va. US atty's office that charged Trump enemies under Halligan. Interesting pick - Theo Stamos was Dem elected as Arlington's top prosecutor. Since 2019, she appears to have veered toward MAGA: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
UPDATE: Trump fires Seattle US Attorney under an hour after judges appointed him. Roger Rogoff tells me he's weighing legal options: “We have a situation that is untenable, not constitutional, and not legal.” news.bloomberglaw.com/business-and...
NEW: Seattle area Western District of Washington judges pick new US attorney, replacing Trump admin's term-expired leader. It's Roger Rogoff, twice appointed by state's former Dem Gov. Inslee. Todd Blanche is a little distracted on Hill today. news.bloomberglaw.com/business-and...
SCOOP: DOJ sets a case quota for all line prosecutors, requiring at least 25 open matters. Trump DOJ leaders are monitoring stats to find low performers. Spox says this'll push out unproductive AUSAs, with "patriotic AUSAs taking their place." news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Scoop: Trump DOJ to drop charges for alleged $722M crypto Ponzi schemer, just before trial. BitClub mastermind said he'd built scam on backs of "idiots" & "sheep." He hired Trump-connected lawyers to lobby DOJ HQ for relief, overruling NJ prosecutors. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
News: Trump DOJ is declining to prosecute more corporate pharma and related consumer protection cases, fueled by DAG rejecting Criminal Div head's push to charge Abbott Labs & execs over contaminated baby formula linked to infant deaths. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Scoop with @ccastronuovo.bsky.social: Pete Hegseth has authorized forced deployments of reservists as DOJ immigration judges. Email to marine reserves seeks "volunteers for involuntary orders." news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
ICYMI: A DOJ OIG that's been criticized for going silent on Trump era scandals is now going into overdrive on a matter that delights Trump admin and GOP: Transmitting all 170 of its Crossfire Hurricane interview transcripts en masse to Sens. Grassley & Johnson news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
News: Under mounting Trump admin. pressure, DOJ inspector general starts sending GOP senators troves of interview transcripts on Crossfire Hurricane probe -- a first-of-its-kind production widely expected to chill future cooperators and whistleblowers news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
SCOOP: Stephen Miller was driving force behind DOJ memo eroding decades of disability rights protections. His push was rooted in view (not backed by evidence) that de-institutionalizing people w/ disabilities increases homelessness. w/ @ccastronuovo.bsky.social news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
New: A trial was supposed to start today in Houston in Nvidia chip smuggling into China case Trump admin promoted as key to protecting US from adversaries. Turns out, Trump's dealmaking at Nvidia's behest to permit sales in China may derail prosecution. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
This is the article @whitehouse.senate.gov just had Grassley enter into record of Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to show the cost of illegal US attorney appointments ⬇️
Ben PennI went long on a new form of Trump DOJ turmoil: Top Las Vegas prosecutor Sigal Chattah repeatedly bypassed Main Justice recusal orders, pushed cases for ex-clients & friends, targeted political foe, & much more. "It's charitable to call it chaos." news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
111 ex-Chicago AUSAs have signed a statement - aboutblaw.com/blX0 - condemning leadership of US Attorney Andrew Boutros. I can't recall this level of concerted criticism from an office's named former prosecutors in this admin. Story by Megan Crepeau: news.bloomberglaw.com/litigation/e...
Read full story for the Bondi drama that beset DOJ congressional affairs this past year. As Epstein scrutiny escalated, Bondi’s team rebuffed her Senate-confirmed Hill liaison’s request for more lawmaker outreach & took hearing advice from inner circle of zinger writers ⬇️
Ben PennNews: Ahead of Blanche confirmation battle, DOJ has tried repairing strained Hill relations, especially among Rs, after Bondi's team marginalized & distrusted head of leg affairs. That official, Patrick Davis, could be key in wooing Senate for Blanche. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...