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Justice Department issues freeze for civil rights division
The Washington Post ^ | January 22, 2025 | Perry Stein and David Nakamura

Posted on 01/22/2025 8:54:34 PM PST by fluorescence

The Justice Department has ordered the civil rights division to halt much of its investigative activity dating from the Biden administration and not pursue new indictments, cases or settlements, according to a memo sent to the temporary head of the division that was obtained by The Washington Post.

The letter instructs Kathleen Wolfe — designated by the Trump administration as supervisor of the division — to ensure that civil rights attorneys do not file “any new complaints, motions to intervene, agreed-upon remands, amicus briefs, or statements of interest.”

Cases that have already been filed would be subject to the discretion of the judge overseeing them.

A separate memo sent to Wolfe on Wednesday says the civil rights division must notify the Justice Department’s chief of staff of any consent decrees the division has finalized within the last 90 days. That directive suggests that police-reform agreements the Justice Department has negotiated with cities including Minneapolis, Louisville and Memphis could be in jeopardy.

The first memo doesn’t state how long the freeze will last, but it largely shuts down the civil rights division for at least the early weeks of the Trump administration. Harmeet K. Dhillon, a Republican lawyer and activist who is President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the department, is awaiting Senate confirmation.

[snip]

“It’s beyond unusual — it’s unprecedented. We’ve never seen this before at this scale with any transfer of power, regardless of the ideology of any incoming president or administration,” said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “This should make Americans both angry and deeply worried. This is more than just a changing course of philosophy — this is exactly what most people [in the civil rights community] feared: a Justice Department that was created to protect

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Breaking News; Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: civilrights; civilrightsdivision; damonhewitt; davidnakamura; doj; perrystein; trump; waposedition; washingtonpost
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1 posted on 01/22/2025 8:54:34 PM PST by fluorescence
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To: fluorescence

The Civil Rights division is going after whitey and Republicans. Its warped and run by bigots. In a just division, they would have teams in CA for example arresting people over vote fraud from the last election for democraps.


2 posted on 01/22/2025 8:58:41 PM PST by KC_Conspirator
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To: fluorescence

The idea is to keep the holdovers from causing problems until Harmeet gets there.

Trump understands these freaks now from the first go round.


3 posted on 01/22/2025 9:08:43 PM PST by Regulator (It's fraud, Jim)
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To: fluorescence
I want to see the video of Perry Stein, David Nakamura and Damon Hewitt sitting at the interview table and collectively Bidening their adult diapers over this development.


4 posted on 01/22/2025 9:09:20 PM PST by kiryandil (No one in AZ that voted for Trump voted for Gallego )
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To: fluorescence

“It’s beyond unusual — it’s unprecedented. We’ve never seen this before at this scale with any transfer of power, regardless of the ideology of any incoming president or administration,” said Damon Hewitt

The President is the head of the DOJ. It’s literally his job to direct their activities in the direction he thinks is best.


5 posted on 01/22/2025 9:12:22 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2025... RETURN OF THE JEDI...)
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To: DesertRhino

Unprecedented bump!


6 posted on 01/22/2025 9:17:05 PM PST by Jim Robinson (Resistance to tyranny is obedience to God.)
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To: fluorescence

If only they really cared about civil rights for everyone. That being said. Don’t we have a DOJ already? Why this extra department? Get rid of it!


7 posted on 01/22/2025 9:26:05 PM PST by vpintheak (Sometimes you’re the windshield, sometimes you’re the bug. )
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To: Jim Robinson

LOL, thanks boss!


8 posted on 01/22/2025 9:44:58 PM PST by DesertRhino (2016 Star Wars, 2020 The Empire Strikes Back, 2025... RETURN OF THE JEDI...)
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To: Regulator

Leo Turrell is going to be one of Harmeet’s lieutenants in the Civil Rights division.


9 posted on 01/22/2025 9:46:35 PM PST by july4thfreedomfoundation (Russia? China? Democrats and RINOs are the biggest threat to the survival of America.)
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To: fluorescence

Long overdue. BUMP!!!


10 posted on 01/22/2025 11:23:15 PM PST by Enterprise (These people have no honor, no belief, no poetry, no art, no humor, no patriotism.)
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To: fluorescence

““It’s beyond unusual — it’s unprecedented. We’ve never seen this before at this scale with any transfer of power, regardless of the ideology of any incoming president or administration,” said Damon Hewitt, president and executive director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “This should make Americans both angry and deeply worried. This is more than just a changing course of philosophy — this is exactly what most people [in the civil rights community] feared: a Justice Department that was created. . .”

Hewitt has the Justice Department confused with its Civil Rights Division, which was created under Eisenhower’s AG William Rogers and quickly diverted to lawfare under Attorneys General Robert Kennedy, Nicholas Katzenbach, and Ramsey Clark.


11 posted on 01/22/2025 11:26:41 PM PST by Fedora
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To: piasa

In 2010, Damon Hewitt was listed as an “ally” of the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), notorious for representing terrorist groups (https://keywiki.org/Center_for_Constitutional_Rights). He spoke at the CCR Social Justice Conference 2012 (https://ccrjustice.org/home/get-involved/events/ccr-social-justice-conference-2012-principles-and-approaches-community).


12 posted on 01/22/2025 11:32:53 PM PST by Fedora
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To: fluorescence

This guy saw the handwriting on the wall and left.

https://www.npr.org/2010/07/13/128490853/former-doj-lawyer-alleges-racial-bias-resigns


13 posted on 01/23/2025 12:16:20 AM PST by combat_boots
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To: Regulator

enemies are imbedded in these agencies and this is a way to neuter them until a new sheriff comes to town


14 posted on 01/23/2025 5:27:50 AM PST by ronnie raygun
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To: fluorescence

BASED!


15 posted on 01/23/2025 5:54:17 AM PST by montag813
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To: fluorescence

Why does a subdivision head like civil rights need Senate confirmation? seems excessive


16 posted on 01/23/2025 5:55:38 AM PST by montag813
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To: fluorescence

If the “Lawyers Committee” is upset than Americans should be happy. The LC, as Michael Savage has noted, was a creation of the American Communist Party 7 decades ago.


17 posted on 01/23/2025 6:06:35 AM PST by montag813
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To: fluorescence
The first memo doesn’t state how long the freeze will last, but it largely shuts down the civil rights division for at least the early weeks of the Trump administration. Harmeet K. Dhillon, a Republican lawyer and activist who is President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the department, is awaiting Senate confirmation.

Well, how about until Harmeet is confirmed. But of course reading comprehension isn't a concept.

18 posted on 01/23/2025 6:14:48 AM PST by AndyJackson
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To: Jim Robinson

In a day of unprecedented evil, we need unprecedented action.


19 posted on 01/23/2025 6:50:52 AM PST by unlearner (Still not tired of winning.)
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To: KC_Conspirator

In a just division, they would have teams in CA for example arresting people over vote fraud from the last election for democraps

You're saying the election that returned Trump to the White House with GOP control of the House and Senate was fraudulent?? And no, Trump didn't win California, but then he was never going to win a state where Democrats outnumber Republicans 2:1.

20 posted on 01/23/2025 8:17:07 AM PST by FormerFRLurker ("Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities"-Voltaire)
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