[WATCH] DOJ Sends Letter to Jan 6th Committee Requesting Full Witness Transcripts

The Justice Department has sent a letter to January 6th House Select Committee requesting all witness interview transcripts, it was revealed during a break midway through the panel’s third live hearing.

The DOJ had requested transcripts prior to the televised hearings, but was refused. At the time, Committee Chair Bennie Thompson (D-MS) said that the January 6th Committee had done a lot of hard work, and they weren’t just going to hand it off to the DOJ. But after the compelling testimony from its first two live hearings overlapped information the DOJ had already found in its own probe, they’ve renewed their demand for the Committee’s witness transcripts and all other pertinent information related to their testimony.

The letter from the DOJ says in part that “It is now readily apparent that the interviews the select committee conducted are not just potentially relevant to our overall criminal investigations, but are likely relevant to specific prosecutions.” The letter was signed by Kenneth Polite, the head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division; Matthew Olsen, who leads the department’s National Security Division; and U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves.

DoJ's new request for transcripts from January 6th committee means they are closing in on the Trump's inner circle and it also means that Biden would now have to deal with a national popcorn shortage

— Exploding Space Pillow Singh, MD 🌊 (@labyrinthweaver) June 16, 2022

“The Select Committee’s failure to grant the Department access to these transcripts complicates the Department’s ability to investigate and prosecute those who engaged in criminal conduct in relation to the January 6 attack on the Capitol,” the letter says. “Accordingly, we renew our request that the Select Committee provide us with copies of the transcripts of all the interviews it has conducted to date.”

The Committee had not yet responded to the new letter by press time, please check back for updates. The next House Select Committee hearing is scheduled to air Tuesday, June 21st, at 1pm PST/10 am EST.