The Latest Breaking News from Merrick Garland

The US Justice Department on Friday named an independent prosecutor to oversee criminal investigations into Donald Trump, three days after the former president announced a new White House run in 2024. Trump called the appointment “political” and “unfair”.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Justice Department has appointed an independent special counsel to oversee criminal investigations related to former President Donald Trump and decide whether to bring any charges now that he’s making a third run for the White House in 2024.

Washington (AFP) - US Attorney General Merrick Garland plans to appoint an independent prosecutor on Friday to oversee the criminal investigations into Donald Trump, three days after the former president announced a new run for the White House in 2024.

Attorney General Merrick Garland has named a special counsel to oversee the Justice Department’s investigation into the presence of classified documents at former President Donald Trump’s Florida estate and aspects of a separate probe involving the Jan. 6 insurrection and efforts to undo the 2020 election

The department's former public integrity chief, most recently a war crimes prosecutor, will oversee the case of the security documents found at the former president's estate and key aspects of Jan. 6.

The special prosecutor will determine whether Mr Trump will face criminal charges as a result of the myriad investigations into his conduct

Legal experts performed "exhaustive analysis" on potential charges against Trump and say he has no defense

Trump’s declaration that he is once again a candidate changes nothing under the law – but the political element could weigh on prosecutors’ success

The consensus in the wake of Donald Trump's announcement that he is running for president in 2024 is that he is hoping to avert, or at least gum up, a decision to file criminal charges against him by the Department of Justice and the Fulton County district attorney in Georgia.