investigation, federal appeals court rules

The Justice Department must make public an internal legal memo commissioned by then-Attorney General William Barr in 2019 to analyze whether he should charge then-President Donald rump with obstruction related to the Russia investigation, a federal appeals court ruled on today.

The ruling from the DC Circuit Court of Appeals comes in a case brought by a government watchdog group that is seeking to get the unredacted version of the memo. The DOJ argued some redacted portions should be shielded from public view.

But the federal appeals court didn't buy that argument, finding that Barr never seriously considered charging the rump with obstructing the Mueller investigation -- saying in the ruling that the memo Barr ordered up was an "academic exercise" and a "thought experiment."

Special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation found several instances where the rump's actions while president could meet the requirements for an obstruction of justice charge, but Mueller left the decision to Barr.

Last edited by Spunky (8/19/2022 8:01 pm)