Senior DOJ Officials Leaked Investigation Details Before Election: Report

Three senior Department of Justice (DOJ) officials leaked "investigative information" to reporters just days before an election, according to a watchdog report.

Reached by Newsweek, a DOJ official declined further comment on Monday.

Why It Matters

The DOJ is among the public's least trusted federal agencies, according to a Pew Research Center survey conducted earlier this year. It's one of three agencies that a majority of Americans view negatively. Forty-four percent said they viewed the DOJ unfavorably, compared with 43 percent who viewed it favorably, according to the survey of 9,424 U.S. adults from July 1 to 7.

Specifically, the DOJ has come under scrutiny from some Republicans who have accused it and other federal law enforcement agencies of weaponizing their authority and using it against President-elect Donald Trump.

However, the motives of the three employees investigated in this case have not been made public.

An American flag flies over the Justice Department headquarters on January 20. Three Justice Department officials were accused of leaking investigative information to reporters just days before an election, according to a new report. J. David Ake/Getty Images

What We Know

On Monday, the DOJ's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a one-page investigative summary of a probe into the alleged leaks.

The investigation found that the officials leaked "non-public DOJ investigative information regarding ongoing DOJ investigative matters" to select reporters just days before an election. There were two news articles published about the information, according to the OIG.

However, the report did not offer specific details about what information was leaked or where the articles were published. It said there were allegations that the actions were "politically motivated."

The report also did not specify before which election the information was leaked or when these actions took place.

It also did not specify the identities of the officials who leaked the information, only that they were not employed by the department when the OIG reached out to them for interviews. They declined the interview requests, and the OIG doesn't have the authority to compel testimony from previous employees.

All three officials violated the department's confidentiality and media policy by leaking the information, while one of the officials also violated the department's social media policy by sharing the articles to an official department social media account.

What Happens Next

The report outlined the next steps now that the investigation has concluded.

"The OIG has completed its investigation and provided its report to the Office of the Deputy Attorney General and, because the report contained misconduct findings against attorneys, provided its report to the Professional Misconduct Review Unit for appropriate action," the report reads.

The full report was also provided to the U.S. Office of Special Counsel to determine whether the officials violated the Hatch Act, which limits certain political activities of federal employees.