1 of 5 | Journalist E. Jean Carroll departs from the courthouse after the conclusion of the damages trial against Donald Trump at Manhattan Federal Court on Jan. 26, 2024. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo
The Justice Department has opened investigations into multiple people who have previously clashed with President Donald Trump in some way.
Below are the investigations currently underway.
E. Jean Carroll
The Trump administration is investigating E. Jean Carroll, a former columnist who successfully sued President Donald Trump for sexual assault and defamation.
The Department of Justice is investigating Carroll for perjury in her cases against Trump and she is just one of Trump’s adversaries facing investigation by the administration.
In May 2023, a Manhattan jury unanimously ruled that Trump battered and defamed Carroll. Trump was accused of sexually assaulting Carroll in a New York City department store in 1996.
The jury did not come to an unanimous agreement that Trump raped Carroll but District Judge Lewis Kaplan clarified that Trump’s actions fell short of New York’s legal definition but would under most definitions be considered rape.
Kaplan dismissed a countersuit by Trump against Carroll in which he alleged Carroll made false statements about him. It was in response to her saying in an interview that Trump had indeed raped her.
Kaplan wrote in his ruling that the jury did not conclude definitively that Trump had “penetrated her vagina with his penis,” but that he did rape Carroll “digitally.”
In January 2024, the court ruled that Trump must pay Carroll $83.3 million in damages. This included $65 million in punitive damages for Trump making defamatory statements about Carroll in 2019, after she levied accusations of sexual assault against him.
Trump’s attempts to fight this judgment have continued into his presidency. In September, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan upheld the judgment, ruling unanimously that the president “failed to identify any grounds that would warrant reconsidering our prior holding on presidential immunity.”
“We also conclude that the district court did not err in any of the challenged rulings and that the jury’s damages awards are fair and reasonable,” the appeals court ruling said.
Trump then appealed for the case to be reheard but in April the federal appeals court again rejected his request.
Carroll filed her initial lawsuit for defamation in 2019. A second lawsuit was filed in 2022 under New York’s recently passed Adult Survivors Act. The law allows sexual assault victims to file civil lawsuits beyond when the statute of limitations has passed.
Last week, the Justice Department opened an investigation into whether Carroll committed perjury in her two civil suits against Trump. The department is looking into a deposition in 2022 in which Carroll said she did not receive outside funding for her lawsuit.
The New York Times, Fortune and Axios reported in April 2023 that Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, helped pay for some of Carroll’s legal fees.
Following these reports, the appeals court determined that Carroll had “plausibly represented” in her deposition “that she had forgotten about the limited outside funding counsel obtained.” The judge said he did not see an issue with Carroll’s credibility.
“Rather, it showed that Ms. Carroll simply was not involved in the matter of who was or was not funding her litigation costs,” the appeals court wrote.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche served as one of Trump’s attorneys in the case and is recused from investigating.
Jerome Powell
Former Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has drawn criticism from the president over the Federal Reserve maintaining elevated interest rates in response to inflation. In November, criticism escalated to action with the Department of Justice opening an investigation into Powell over the cost of remodeling the Federal Reserve’s headquarters.
The probe centers on the $2.5 billion renovation project to the Marriner S. Eccles Building and the Federal Reserve Board-East Building. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, who took the lead on the investigation, alleges that the project is billions of dollars over its budget.
Powell called the investigation “pretext,” an attempt to punish him for not lowering federal interest rates at the president’s command.
For months the president warned he may try to remove Powell as chairman, though that did not come to pass. Powell’s term ended last month and he has been succeeded by Kevin Warsh. Powell remains on the board of governors.
While Trump expressed his desire to remove Powell, it raised questions about his authority to do so. The Federal Reserve is an independent agency that dictates monetary policy. That independent status is crucial to its mission so it may avoid making policy decisions based on political goals, goals that shift when the person occupying the White House changes.
Trump nominated Powell to the position of chair in 2018. He also nominated his replacement earlier this year.
The investigation into Powell nearly had the opposite effect of removing him. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said he would not vote to advance Trump’s nominee to succeed Powell out of the Senate Banking Committee until the investigation concluded.
Days before the committee voted, the Justice Department announced it would pause its investigation into Powell. Pirro called on the Inspector General for the Federal Reserve to investigate the cost of the Federal Reserve renovation project.
“The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers,” Pirro posted on social media. “I expect a comprehensive report in short order and am confident the outcome will assist in resolving, once and for all, the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas.”
James Comey
Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted for making false statements and obstruction during his 2020 testimony before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. The Justice Department announced charges against him in September, alleging that he made false statements and obstructed justice as the senate committee probed the claims that Russia had colluded with Trump during his 2016 election campaign.
Interim U.S. Attorney for Eastern Virginia Lindsey Halligan made a statement at the time charges were announced, saying the charges “represent a breach of public trust at an extraordinary level.” Halligan would later become the focal point of attention as the case progressed.
Before that, Comey pleaded not guilty during a hearing in October. His defense team announced its plans to file motions alleging the charges are “vindictive and selective prosecution” and challenging Halligan’s appointment as a federal attorney.
Trump called for the Justice Department to prosecute Comey in a post on social media, saying “We can’t delay any longer.”
“They impeached me twice and indicted me (5 times!),” Trump wrote. “OVER NOTHING. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!”
In November, federal magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick said Halligan made errors in the indictment of Comey that could derail the entire case, including potentially violating Comey’s Fourth Amendment rights and violating court orders. He said the prosecution went against its burden of proof by telling the grand jury that Comey may need to testify at trial to explain his innocence, and that Halligan appeared to have misled the grand jury on how much evidence the prosecution had against Comey.
Halligan had never prosecuted a criminal case before. She is one of several of Trump’s attorneys to receive appointments during his current term in office.
“The Court finds the record in this case requires full disclosure of grand jury materials,” Fitzpatrick said in his decision. “In so finding, the Court recognizes this is an extraordinary remedy, but given the factually based challenges the defense has raised to the government’s conduct and the prospect that government misconduct may have tainted the grand jury proceedings, disclosure of grand jury materials under these unique circumstances is necessary to fully protect the rights of the accused.”
In November, U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie of South Carolina ordered that Halligan’s appointment as U.S. attorney by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi was “invalid.”
“Halligan has been unlawfully serving in that role since September 22, 2025,” Currie said.
Currie dismissed the case against Comey as well as a case by the Trump administration against New York Attorney General Letitia James, on the grounds that Halligan was improperly appointed.
Halligan ultimately stepped down after U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia David Novak prohibited her from representing herself as a U.S. attorney before the court.
“In short, this charade of Ms. Halligan masquerading as the United States Attorney for this District in direct defiance of binding court orders must come to an end,” Novak said.
On March 21, Trump took a parting shot at another former FBI director who investigated him: Robert Mueller III. Mueller died that day at the age of 81. Trump acknowledged Mueller’s death with a post on social media.
“Good, I’m glad he’s dead,” Trump wrote.
Jack Smith
Jack Smith, former special counsel in the Justice Department, investigated Trump during the BIden administration for mishandling classified documents and his involvement in a scheme to overturn the 2020 election results, leading to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. Days before Trump was sworn into office, Smith tendered his resignation.
After Trump won the 2024 election, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan agreed to dismiss the indictment against him for his election scheme without prejudice.
Smith has stood by the indictment of Trump, saying during a House Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this year that he would prosecute Trump again.
“If asked whether to prosecute a former president based on the same facts today, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat,” Smith told the committee.
In February 2025, little more than a month after returning to office, Trump signed an executive order to suspend security clearances held by lawyers at the law firm Covington & Burling. The law firm assisted Smith while he was special counsel in the Justice Department.
When signing the executive order, Trump said he wanted to “savor” the moment.
In August, the Office of Special Counsel opened an investigation into Smith, alleging violations of the Hatch Act, a law that prohibits political activities by government officials.
To date, no further details have been made public about the investigation or what the alleged activities in question are. The office does not have the authority to file charges but can recommend actions to the Justice Department.
At least 20 officials who were part of the federal prosecutions of Trump have been fired by Trump, including nine members of Smith’s team.
This week in Washington
President Donald Trump discusses renovations to the Lincoln Reflecting Pool and makes an announcement on coal in the Oval Office at the White House on Thursday. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI | License Photo
