Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that a special counsel had been hired to look into the finding of secret government documents at President Joe Biden’s private residence and workplace.
Garland’s statement came hours after Biden and his attorney claimed that a second group of top-secret documents had recently been discovered in a garage at the president’s personal residence in Wilmington, Delaware.
On November 2, attorneys for the president discovered a first batch of secret documents in an office at a Washington think tank that Biden had previously used as a private citizen.
After the initial discovery of the data, Garland had previously charged John Lausch, the U.S. Attorney for Chicago, with leading the investigation.
Hur’s hiring was “not a decision [Garland] made lightly,” a top Department of Justice said.
The official stated, “The regulations could not be more clear that based on the facts that made the US attorney launch his initial investigation, an appointment of a special counsel is required.”
In November, Garland named Jack Smith, another former federal prosecutor, as special counsel to lead two judicial inquiries of President Donald Trump.
In November, Garland named Jack Smith, another former federal prosecutor, as special counsel to lead two judicial inquiries of President Donald Trump.
One of those investigations is looking into whether Trump broke the law, which requires presidents to turn over government records to the National Archives and Records Administration after leaving office, and whether he obstructed justice when authorities tried to get access to records he kept at his Florida home.
Thousands of federal documents were uncovered by FBI officials during an August raid on Trump’s home in his Mar-a-Lago club, hundreds of which had classified markings.
READ MORE: After FAA issue, more delays are anticipated for US flights