A federal district court judge in Washington has ordered the release of a legal memorandum prepared by the Trump-era Justice Department for then-Attorney General William Barr to assist in his decision on whether to prosecute then-President Donald Trump for obstruction of justice during the Mueller investigation.
The Justice Department had withheld the March 24, 2019 memo claiming that it should be exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act because it contained private advice of lawyers and was produced prior to any decisions were made.
U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, an Obama appointee, rejected the argument, saying that at the time when Barr had received the memo he and the writers had a shared understanding over the decision not to prosecute Trump, and the document was not "Predecisional."
"The review of the document reveals that the Attorney General was not then engaged in making a decision about whether the President should be charged with obstruction of justice; the fact that he would not be prosecuted was a given."
"In a declaration to the court, a DOJ Office of Legal Counsel special counsel Paul Colborn said that the first document referred to as"Document 6″ and described as an "Untitled, undated draft legal analysis" had contained OLC legal advice and analysis as well as confidential client information.
Colborn also explained that the DOJ withheld portions of the March 24, 2019 memo because it contained "Advice and analysis supporting a recommendation regarding the decision [Barr] was considering."
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to The Epoch Times' request for comment on whether it was considering options to stay the order.
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
Federal Judge Orders DOJ to Release Memo Related to Trump Obstruction of Justice Charge
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