Trump Administration Dismisses DOJ Officials Involved in Criminal Investigations Against President
The fired employees were integral to special counsel Jack Smith’s investigations into Trump’s handling of classified documents and the January 6th events.
WASHINGTON — In a move that marks an escalation in President Donald Trump’s response to ongoing criminal probes, the Justice Department announced Monday that it had dismissed several career attorneys who were involved in the investigation against him. These prosecutors were part of special counsel Jack Smith’s team, which led the investigations into Trump’s handling of classified documents and his alleged efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, culminating in the January 6th Capitol attack
“Today, Acting Attorney General James McHenry terminated the employment of a number of DOJ officials who played a significant role in prosecuting President Trump," a Justice Department official told NBC News. "In light of their actions, the Acting Attorney General does not trust these officials to assist in faithfully implementing the President’s agenda. This action is consistent with our mission to end the weaponization of government."
Among those dismissed were career prosecutors Molly Gaston, J.P. Cooney, Anne McNamara, and Mary Dohrmann, according to an official familiar with the matter.
Smith resigned earlier this month ahead of Trump’s re-election, which effectively nullified the ongoing federal criminal investigations against him due to the Justice Department’s long-standing policy against prosecuting sitting presidents. The only criminal case against Trump to have resulted in a conviction remains the New York hush money case, led by Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg. Trump was given a penalty-free unconditional discharge and became the first convicted felon to assume the presidency.
The Georgia election interference case, brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, remains on hold indefinitely after Willis was removed from the case due to conflict-of-interest concerns in December.
Trump has repeatedly labeled the investigations as politically motivated “witch hunts” throughout his 2024 re-election campaign, claiming that Democrats have “weaponized” the Justice Department to undermine his candidacy.
Special counsel Smith and former Attorney General Merrick Garland have consistently denied any political motivations, insisting that Trump’s actions directly led to the criminal probes into his involvement in the January 6th riot and mishandling of classified documents.
Legal experts and former Justice Department officials have condemned Trump’s actions against career prosecutors, arguing that retaliating against civil servants undermines the Justice Department’s independence and could deter future investigations into public officials.
“Firing prosecutors because of cases they were assigned to work on is just unacceptable,” said former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance, an NBC News legal analyst. “It’s anti-rule of law; it’s anti-democracy.”
A Justice Department official noted, “He’s playing with the casino’s money. Whatever the government has to pay out, if any rights are found to have been violated, it’ll pale in comparison. It’s a price he’s willing to have the government pay."
The letters sent to the dismissed employees specifically cited their roles in investigating Trump. “You played a significant role in prosecuting President Trump,” one letter read. “The proper functioning of government critically depends on the trust superior officials place in their subordinates. Given your significant role in prosecuting the president, I do not believe that the leadership of the department can trust you to assist in implementing the president's agenda faithfully.”
The letter also acknowledged that the fired employees have the option to appeal the decision to the federal Merit Systems Protection Board, which oversees the discipline of federal employees.
Legal experts argue that such dismissals may violate the due process rights of career civil servants, who are protected by civil service laws and cannot be fired without cause.
In the early hours of his inauguration, Trump issued an executive order aimed at “ending the weaponization of the federal government.” The order called for senior officials to root out what Trump and his allies perceive as politically driven actions against them by the Justice Department and other federal agencies.
Former special counsel Jack Smith, a career civil servant, had previously prosecuted both Republicans and Democrats, and his office was staffed by a bipartisan team of career attorneys and FBI agents. No evidence has emerged suggesting that Smith’s investigations were influenced by political bias or the Biden administration.
In his resignation letter, Smith wrote: “Throughout my service as Special Counsel, seeking to influence the election one way or the other, or seeking to interfere in its outcome, played no role in our work. My Office had one north star: to follow the facts and law wherever they led. Nothing more and nothing less.”