The Department of Justice is reportedly investigating misconduct allegations against special counsel Jack Smith’s office involving the investigation into President-elect Donald Trump — and new legal probe that will extend into 2025.
Included in the investigation is, ironically, allegations that Smith’s team mishandled classified documents.
In addition, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has recently sought court intervention to prevent suspected document destruction by Smith’s team.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-O.H., said he was recently briefed by Department of Justice official Jeffrey Ragsdale on the investigation.
“While [Ragsdale] cannot guarantee a specific time frame to complete a thorough investigation of the matter, his office is moving expeditiously, and he expects that the review will conclude in 2025,” Assistant Attorney General Carlos Uriarte wrote in a letter to Jordan.
The DOJ’s investigation, opened in June 2023, reportedly focuses on prosecutor Jay Bratt’s conduct in the classified documents case.
Attorney Stanley Woodward accused Bratt of inappropriately referencing Woodward’s judicial nomination during case discussions.
“The allegation against Bratt was made by Stanley Woodward, an attorney representing one of the co-defendants in the classified documents case against Trump,” The Washington Examiner reported. “Woodward said that during a private meeting, Bratt inappropriately brought up Woodward’s application to become a judge while Bratt was trying to goad Woodward into complying with him in the Trump case.”
Smith’s team has challenged the accusation.
“The notion that a 30-year veteran federal prosecutor would engage in such a ham-handed tactic in this sensitive investigation in a meeting alongside three other prosecutors and in the context of his first interaction with a defense attorney is nonsensical,” Smith’s team wrote in August court filings.
Meanwhile, Paxton filed an emergency motion after photographs allegedly showed a paper shredding truck outside DOJ headquarters last month. His November 8 Freedom of Information Act request seeks records related to Smith’s investigation.
“The American people demand transparency and I will do everything in my power to hold the Biden Administration accountable for weaponizing the justice system to interfere with President Trump’s re-election campaign,” Paxton said.
The investigation’s timeline means it will likely conclude after Smith and his team resign, which is expected before Trump is sworn back into office. Their prosecutions against Trump were dropped due to DOJ policy against prosecuting sitting presidents.
Ragsdale defended the investigation’s delay in Congressional correspondence.
“Such a practice ensures that the OPR process is not inappropriately used to disrupt an ongoing prosecution and avoids interference with the court’s own supervision of the case,” Ragsdale wrote.
Jordan criticized the timeline, arguing it could “keep bad-actor attorneys in place to continue prosecutorial misconduct.” The DOJ plans to share its final report with Congress.
The overall scope of the probe extends beyond the Bratt incident, and is examining many allegations against Smith’s team — ironically, including complaints about their handling of classified documents. Ragsdale’s team of nonpartisan investigators will continue after the presidential transition.
Trump and his allies have promised additional investigations into Smith’s prosecutions once the new administration takes office. The DOJ has not responded to allegations about document destruction or commented on Paxton’s emergency motion.