WASHINGTON — Special counsel Jack Smith has resigned from the Justice Department on Friday, officials said in a court filing on Saturday.
The move was expected ahead of President-elect Donald Trump taking the oath of office.
Smith’s report on Trump’s alleged involvement in 2020 election interference is expected to be released soon. Trump has denied the allegations.
“The Special Counsel completed his work and submitted his final confidential report on January 7, 2025, and separated from the Department on January 10,” a government court filing said in a footnote.
The footnote was part of a Justice Department filing in which the government asked U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, a Trump appointee, not to extend a restriction that is temporarily blocking part of Smith’s report from being released.
Trump had been indicted on charges related to allegations that he attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election results. He had entered a not guilty plea before the case was dropped. The federal charges, brought by Smith, were dismissed after Trump was elected in 2024. The Justice Department has a longstanding policy not to prosecute a sitting president.
Smith was appointed in November 2022 by Attorney General Merrick Garland. Garland said at the time that appointing Smith was in “the public interest” because Trump had announced his candidacy and Biden was also planning to run for a second term. Garland, who had been appointed by Biden, said in 2022 that his selection of Smith “underscores the Department’s commitment to both independence and accountability in particularly sensitive matters.”
Smith oversaw investigations into Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election, as well as allegations that he mishandled classified documents.
The former president was indicted in the classified documents case as well, though Cannon dismissed the case in July 2024, deciding that Smith was unlawfully appointed and funded. Trump had pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The president-elect frequently criticized Smith, and he said in October that he would “fire him within two seconds” of taking office.
A spokesperson for Trump did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Earlier this week, a federal appeals court ruled that the Justice Department could release Smith’s report on Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The court, however, kept in place Cannon’s order that the report’s release must be delayed for three days to allow for Trump to consider whether to appeal the decision further.
Cannon said in a Saturday order that the Justice Department must submit a filing by 10 a.m. on Sunday confirming that the volume of Smith’s report about alleged election interference does not discuss Walt Nauta or Carlos De Oliveira, two co-defendants in the classified documents case. Although the classified documents case against Trump was dropped, Nauta and De Oliveira still face charges.
Smith has said that he would not release the second volume of his report regarding the classified documents case as charges against the co-defendants are pending.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
