CREW is suing the Department of Justice on its failure to turn over documents on United States Attorney John H. Durham’s investigation on Russian interference in the 2016 election. 

After the announcement of the DOJ’s investigation into Russian interference and the Trump campaign, Attorney General William Barr claimed that the investigation was biased against Trump and appointed Durham to conduct an independent investigation. The conclusions drawn from the Mueller investigation showed that the investigation was not politically motivated, as Barr claimed. Additionally, while there was insufficient evidence to charge a broader conspiracy, the report produced convictions of numerous Trump campaign officials and associates. Barr’s involvement in the Mueller investigation created a potential appearance of impropriety because it appeared that Barr had pre-judged the outcome of the investigation. Still, Barr and Durham continue to pursue an inquiry into the origins of the investigation.

Previously, CREW requested documents that would shed light on Barr’s involvement with Durham’s investigation and sued DOJ when it failed to turn over any responsive documents. The latest lawsuit stems from three FOIA requests CREW filed concerning the costs of trips related to Durham’s investigation, including an international trip to Italy taken by Barr, and copies of all budgets, expenses, salaries, and costs of the investigation. CREW is suing following DOJ’s failure to turn over these documents.

The public deserves to know how much taxpayer money is going to Barr and Durham’s biased, duplicative, and secretive inquiry, especially given the conclusions from the official DOJ inquiry that there was no political motive for the launch of the investigation. 

Lawsuit Documents


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