Biden Justice Department , CD3 DFL

Justice Department curtails seizure of reporters’ phone, email records in leak investigations

Attorney General Merrick Garland has sharply limited how and when prosecutors can secretly obtain reporters’ phone and email records, formalizing a Biden administration decree that the government would stop using secret orders and subpoenas for journalists’ data to hunt for leakers.

The memo says the department “will no longer use compulsory legal process for the purpose of obtaining information from or records of members of the news media acting within the scope of newsgathering activities.”

The previous Justice Department rules for using reporters’ data to pursue unauthorized disclosures of classified information were widely criticized by First Amendment advocates and members of Congress, who said they gave free rein to prosecutors to secretly pursue such records if they thought telling the news organization in question might harm an investigation. Continue reading.

Garland imposes moratorium on federal executions

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday announced a moratorium on federal executions, a shift from the Trump administration, which had resumed the use of the death penalty in federal cases.

Garland said in the memo that the Justice Department would also review its policies and procedures to make sure they “are consistent with the principles articulated in this memorandum.”

“The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States, but is also treated fairly and humanely,” Garland said in a statement. “That obligation has special force in capital cases.” Continue reading.

Georgia GOP lawmakers’ flaws could be exposed in DOJ lawsuit

The U.S. Department of Justice’s lawsuit against Georgia could place the state’s Republican lawmakers under a microscope to unveil their biased intent where voting restrictions are concerned.

A new piece published by The Daily Beast outlines the details of the complaint, the DOJ’s options, and the legal path it could take. On Friday, June 25, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and the DOJ filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Georgia.

The lawsuit, which was also filed before Trump-appointed Judge J.P. Boulee, alleges that some provisions of the Georgia law SB-202 “violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.” Continue reading.

Justice Dept. sues state of Georgia over new voting restrictions

Justice Department officials announced a federal lawsuit Friday against Georgia over new statewide voting restrictions that federal authorities allege purposefully discriminate against Black Americans, the first major action by the Biden administration to confront efforts from Republican-led jurisdictions to limit election turnout.

The legal challenge takes aim at Georgia’s Election Integrity Act, which was passed in March by the Republican-led state legislature and signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp (R). The law imposes new limits on the use of absentee ballots, makes it a crime for outside groups to provide food and water to voters waiting at polling stations, and hands greater control over election administration to the state legislature.

The action came as GOP-led state governments across the country have been seeking to impose broad new voting restrictions in the wake of President Biden’s victory over Donald Trump last November. Trump has spent months waging a baseless effort to discredit the result, making false and unsubstantiated allegations of widespread voter fraud. Continue reading.

Garland tries to untangle the Trump legacy at the Justice Department

Three months into his new job, judge-turned-attorney-general Merrick Garland, who inherited a demoralized and politicized Justice Department, is facing criticism from some Democrats that he is not doing enough to quickly expunge Trump-era policies and practices.

On a host of issues ranging from leak investigations to civil and criminal cases involving former president Donald Trump, Garland has been beset by a growing chorus of congressional second-guessers, even as he insists he is scrupulously adhering to the principles of equal justice under the law.

How he charts his way through the current controversies and still-unresolved politically sensitive cases is likely to determine how much of a long-term impact the Trump presidency has on the Justice Department. Continue reading.

AG Garland to double enforcement staff to protect voting rights

Attorney General Merrick Garland on Friday announced the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division will double the number of enforcement staff dedicated to protecting the right to vote in the next 30 days.

Why it matters: After an election fraught with baseless claims of fraud and a recent flurry of voter restriction bills in state legislatures, Garland underscored his dedication to protecting voting rights. He said the DOJ will “do everything in its power to prevent election fraud, and if found to vigorously prosecute” but will also scrutinize “new laws that seek to curb voter access.”

“There are many things that are open to debate in America, but the right of all eligible citizens to vote is not one of them,” Garland said in his speech. “The right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy. The right from which all other rights, ultimately flow.” Continue reading.

Mystery surrounds Justice’s pledge on journalist records

The Department of Justice’s (DOJ) pledge that it will no longer secretly obtain the records of journalists has left a number of unanswered questions about the department’s handling of leak investigations initiated during the Trump era.

It’s not clear what high-ranking Biden officials knew and when as the Justice Department proceeded with cases involving reporters from three different media outlets or why the department continued to push for gag orders in two cases even after President Biden said late last month that seizure of journalist records was “simply wrong.”

Press advocates were happy to see the DOJ reverse itself Saturday and say it would no longer target journalists, but they also point out they’d like to know more. Continue reading.

Justice Department proposes policies to address mass shootings

Administration focuses on stabilizing braces and red flag laws

The Justice Department proposed a new rule Monday to more closely regulate pistols that have “stabilizing braces” to allow them to be fired from the shoulder, which it said has been used in at least two mass shootings in the past three years.

Companies now sell accessories that make it easy for people to convert pistols into more dangerous weapons known as short-barreled rifles, which have heightened regulations because they are easy to conceal, can cause great damage and are more likely to be used to commit crimes, the DOJ said.

Those accessories mean the owners can get a short-barreled rifle without going through the National Firearms Act’s background check and registration requirements, the proposed rule states. Congress passed the law in 1934 to regulate certain “gangster” type weapons by taxing them, the DOJ said. Continue reading.

Senate confirms Clarke as first Black woman to lead DOJ civil rights

The Senate on Tuesday voted to confirm Kristen Clarke as the new head of the Justice Department’s civil rights division in a tight 51-48 vote, with Sen. Susan Collins (Maine) the only Republican to cross party lines and vote for her.

Clarke will be the first Black woman to lead the influential wing of the Justice Department and will serve as assistant attorney general for civil rights.

The civil rights division’s tasks include investigating local law enforcement agencies and taking on state voting restrictions around the country. Continue reading.

Biden administration, House Democrats reach agreement in Donald McGahn subpoena lawsuit

The Biden Justice Department and lawyers for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) have reached an agreement about how to handle a congressional subpoena for testimony from former Trump White House counsel Donald McGahn.

The House Judiciary Committee and the Biden administration announced the deal Tuesday in a filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. The parties told the court they have “an agreement in principle on an accommodation.” Former president Donald Trump is “not a party to the agreement,” the filing states.

No additional details were provided about the negotiated settlement. Continue reading.

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