SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE LAUNCHES JOINT INVESTIGATION OF NOMINEE MICHAEL CHERTOFF AND ALLEGED JUSTICE DEPARTMENT MISUSE OF ORGANIZED CRIME OPERATIVE
Illegal Activity by FBI and Other U.S. Agencies While Mr. Chertoff was U.S. Attorney in New Jersey
Judicial Watch Requested a Meeting to Brief the
Judiciary Committee Earlier This Week
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption and abuse, announced today that the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary has launched a joint investigation of judicial nominee Michael Chertoff, who was slated to join the bench of the U.S. Court of Appeals to the Third Circuit, and the alleged Justice Department misuse of organized crime operatives by the FBI and other U.S. government agencies in the District of New Jersey (among other northeastern U.S. jurisdictions), while Mr. Chertoff served as the U.S. Attorney. The announcement by Judiciary Committee Chairman, Senator Orrin Hatch, came during a contentious committee “mark-up” hearing, this morning.
Judicial Watch requested a meeting with members and staff of the Judiciary Committee on Monday, May 19, 2003, in order to present information concerning the evidence it had developed. When the Committee did not respond, Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman wrote letters to, and personally approached, senators in a last-ditch effort to have the Committee examine and consider the evidence.
Today’s Judiciary Committee mark-up hearing became the forum wherein Judicial Watch’s earlier request surfaced. Senators from both parties expressed caution and a keen interest and urgency in examining the evidence. Based on their serious concerns, Committee Chairman Hatch and Ranking Member Senator Patrick Leahy urged and then launched a joint investigation into the matter. Importantly, all Democrats on the Committee refused to vote for Chertoff, and instead registered “present.”
“We offered our information to the Senate with the hope of providing transparency and accountability in government to the American public. It is a matter of the Senate conducting a serious investigation and we are pleased to cooperate with its investigation,” stated Judicial Watch Chairman and General Counsel Larry Klayman.