Attorney General Merrick Garland has announced plans to release Special Counsel Jack Smith's report on the 2020 election interference case involving President-elect Trump. The report, consisting of two volumes, will shed light on allegations that Trump sought to unlawfully overturn the results of the presidential election.
Volume One of the report will be made available to Congress and the public, while Volume Two, which pertains to a classified documents case against Trump, will only be accessible to select members of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees due to ongoing criminal proceedings involving two defendants.
The decision to disclose Volume One aims to keep congressional leadership informed while safeguarding the defendants' interests. Special counsels typically release final reports detailing their investigation findings and any decisions regarding prosecution. In this case, given Trump's status as president-elect and Justice Department policy against charging a sitting president, the prosecution decision is not applicable.
Smith, who is set to resign before Trump's inauguration, faced a legal challenge from co-defendants seeking to block the report's release. A district judge granted a temporary injunction preventing the report's dissemination outside the Department of Justice until a resolution is reached by the U.S. Court of Appeals.
Smith's investigation encompassed allegations of election interference and the handling of classified documents by Trump and his associates. Legal proceedings against the defendants are ongoing, with some charges being dropped due to procedural issues.
Garland's decision to release reports from previous special counsels, including those investigating the origins of the Trump-Russia probe and President Biden's handling of classified documents, underscores the commitment to transparency and accountability within the Justice Department.
