The U.S. Office of Special Counsel, an independent federal agency, announced Saturday that it is investigating former Justice Department prosecutor Jack Smith for possible violations of the Hatch Act. "The Guardian".
Smith investigated Donald Trump's role in the riots in Congress on January 6, 2021, and the alleged misuse of classified documents.
Confirmation of the investigation comes after Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton called last week for Smith, 56, to be investigated for "unprecedented interference in the 2024 election."
The Hatch Act, a federal law passed in 1939, restricts certain political activities by federal employees. Trump, along with other prominent Republican lawmakers, have argued that Smith's investigations of Trump constituted illegal political activity.
Smith was appointed special counsel by then-Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022 — three days after Trump announced his candidacy for a second term — to investigate Trump's possible interference in the 2020 election and handling of classified documents.
However, the special counsel's office, the federal agency investigating Smith, is different from the type of special prosecutor position that is appointed by the Department of Justice, which is the role Smith held.
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As an independent federal agency, it lacks the power to bring criminal charges, but instead can seek disciplinary action against a federal government employee or refer its findings to the Department of Justice for investigation.
Smith eventually filed two criminal charges against Trump in 2023, but resigned in January of this year and the cases were dismissed after Trump won a second term.
Jack Smith led the Special Prosecutor's Office in The Hague in the indictment filed against the former leaders of the General Staff of the Kosovo Liberation Army. He was removed from his position at the Special Prosecutor's Office to launch the investigation into Trump.
