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Ed Martin speaks at an event hosted by Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., at the Capitol in Washington, June 13, 2023. (AP Photo/Amanda Andrade-Rhoades, File)
As curiosity grows around whether the current Department of Justice might take action against one of its own for potentially leaking grand jury details, the individual at the heart of the controversy remains vocal on social media.
On Thursday morning, Ed Martin posted a cheerful photo on X, featuring himself alongside Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who ranks just below U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. The image was accompanied by his familiar greeting, “Good morning, America. How are ya?”
Despite the swirling controversy, Martin maintains an upbeat demeanor. Recently, reports surfaced that he was removed from his position in January with the DOJ’s “Weaponization Working Group,” a role where he allegedly targeted individuals seen as adversaries of former President Donald Trump.
Following up on these developments, CNN reported Wednesday allegations that Martin was under scrutiny for possibly leaking grand jury information without authorization. This information was reportedly linked to an investigation into Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a prominent Trump critic, concerning alleged mortgage fraud.
Insider sources claim that the DOJ’s review concluded Martin mishandled the grand jury documents, with his emails seemingly contradicting his denials.
CNN followed up on that reporting Wednesday with serious claims that Blanche’s office had reviewed whether Martin improperly leaked grand jury information to unauthorized individuals, material reportedly related to a probe of Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a longtime Trump rival, for alleged mortgage fraud.
According to the report, which cited anonymous sources, the DOJ came away from that review concluding Martin did mishandle grand jury materials, after Martin’s emails allegedly undermined his denials.
Blanche, for his part, was quoted in the story saying that “there are no misconduct investigations into Ed Martin,” while praising him for doing a “great job as Pardon Attorney.”
Close readers, and the CNN story itself, noted that stating there are not misconduct investigations into Martin does not answer the question of whether there ever were such probes, or if there are investigations that run deeper than “misconduct.” A reported DOJ finding of misconduct has not led to criminal charges, however, and a source in Martin’s camp reportedly said he “followed DOJ standards and procedures at all times.”
Multiple lawyers rapidly reacted to CNN’s reporting using the words “if” and “looks like” when sounding an alarm about possible “federal crimes.”
“Ed Martin was found, per CNN below, by DOJ to have violated GJ secrecy and also apparently lied about it,” said former Mueller probe prosecutor Andrew Weissmann. “If the reporting is accurate, both are federal crimes. Will Martin be charged, given how quick a trigger this DOJ has re Letitia James & James Comey?”
“If a prosecutor provides grand jury materials to an unauthorized person, that is a criminal contempt of court,” said Rep. Daniel Goldman, a Democrat and former longtime federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. “If ‘no one is above the law,’ as @AGPamBondi often preposterously says, why isn’t @EagleEdMartin being held in contempt?”
“Looks like Ed Martin may have committed some crimes so it makes perfect sense that he’s staying on as the DOJ Pardon Attorney!” remarked former Obama administration DOJ and DHS lawyer Eric Columbus.
The DOJ’s Criminal Resource Manual specifically addresses when criminal contempt or obstruction prosecutions may be brought against “an attorney for the government” bound by grand jury secrecy Rule 6(e)(2) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.
The manual says the DOJ is not prevented from “prosecuting a United States Attorney, an Assistant United States Attorney, or a Department of Justice attorney who obtains grand jury information in his or her official capacity for criminal contempt under 18 U.S.C. § 401(3) if he or she makes an unauthorized disclosure of grand jury information.”
In addition, the DOJ says, the “unauthorized disclosure of grand jury information can also be punished under other criminal statutes as well as pursuant to a district court’s contempt powers.”
“If an individual discloses grand jury material with the intent to obstruct an ongoing investigation, he or she may be prosecuted for obstruction of justice under 18 U.S.C. § 1503,” the manual states.