The Justice Department is asking a federal grand jury to indict former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson over allegations that she lied to Congress about President Donald Trump‘s conduct during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.
Hutchinson, 29, became a central figure in the House January 6 Committee’s investigation after giving highly consequential testimony about Trump’s actions.
During a 2022 hearing, she said Trump appeared indifferent to reports that some of his supporters were carrying weapons, allegedly remarking that they were “not here to hurt me.” She also testified that he “lunged” at the Secret Service agent driving his presidential limousine away from the Capitol.
The Justice Department launched a federal criminal investigation into Hutchinson earlier this year, as Our News Outlet previously reported. The inquiry was initiated by then-Attorney General Pam Bondi only weeks before she left the department.
Punchbowl News was the first outlet to report that federal prosecutors are pursuing an indictment.
Prosecutors from the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division, which is led by Trump ally Harmeet Dhillon, are directing the case. They began presenting evidence to a federal grand jury earlier this week.
Additional witnesses and evidence are expected to be presented later this month. Hutchinson, however, reportedly has not been subpoenaed to testify before the grand jury.
Hutchinson disclosed late last month that she is the subject of a federal criminal investigation.
Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, is sworn in to testify about the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol
A mob of supporters of President Donald Trump fight with members of law enforcement at the site of a door they broke open at the entrance of the US Capitol
President Donald Trump, then-Attorney General Pam Bondi and then-Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche hold a press conference
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Last month, Hutchinson said she would invoke her Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination if she were compelled to testify.
The Civil Rights Division’s involvement is notable. Traditionally focused on discrimination involving race, sex, age, religion and other protected categories, the division has undergone a broad mission overhaul during Trump’s second term under Dhillon’s leadership.
Attorney General Todd Blanche has also indicated that the investigation could continue. Speaking to reporters earlier this year, he said Trump had both “the right” and “the duty” to call for investigations into people who had violated the law.
Rep. Barry Loudermilk, chairman of the House Republicans’ still-active January 6 Committee, referred Hutchinson’s case to the Justice Department in March and urged prosecutors to investigate her.
Loudermilk has accused Hutchinson, who served as an aide to Trump’s first-term White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, of giving false testimony to Congress.
In her testimony, Hutchinson said Trump knew January 6 protesters might resort to violence but encouraged them to proceed to the US Capitol anyway.
She also said she had learned secondhand that an “irate” Trump lunged at a Secret Service agent after the presidential limousine was driven away from the Capitol against his wishes. According to Hutchinson, Trump “reached up towards the front of the vehicle to grab at the steering wheel.”
When the agent stopped him, Hutchinson testified, Trump lunged toward the agent.
Trump has denied that the confrontation occurred, while the limousine driver who was operating the vehicle has disputed Hutchinson’s account.
The Justice Department declined to comment on the indictment. An attorney for Hutchinson did not immediately respond to Our News Outlet’s request for comment.
