WASHINGTON (AFP) – Jack Smith, the special counsel appointed to investigate Donald Trump for his alleged effort to overturn results of the 2020 election, has left the United States (US) Department of Justice, prosecutors said on Saturday in a court filing.
“The Special Counsel completed his work and submitted his final confidential report on January 7, 2025, and separated from the Department on January 10,” officials said in the document submitted to US District Judge Aileen Cannon, urging her to not extend her order last week blocking the release of Smith’s final report.
The statement on Smith was a footnote in the filing to Cannon as she mulls whether to maintain a hold on the special counsel’s report on two cases: Trump’s role in the January 6, 2020 insurrection at the US Capitol aimed at halting certification of Joe Biden’s victory, and the case of Trump’s withholding of classified documents after he left the White House.
With the hold set to expire in the coming days and Cannon considering an extension, the protracted legal fight over the report on Trump-related cases is coming down to the week or so before he is inaugurated as America’s 47th president on January 20.
Trump suggested in a late night post on his Truth Social platform that Smith has been “fired” by the Department of Justice.
“He is a disgrace to himself, his family, and his country. After spending over USD100,000,000 on the witch hunt against Trump, he left town empty handed!” he wrote.
Smith had accused Trump of conspiracy to defraud the US and conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, the session of Congress called to certify Biden’s election win but which was violently attacked on January 6 by a mob of the Republican leader’s supporters.
