The Supreme Court blocked the disclosure of grand jury materials in Robert Mueller’s special counsel investigation.
In a written order issued Wednesday, the high court agreed with a request by the Justice Department to halt a lower court decision to disclose the information to the Democratic-led House Judiciary Committee temporarily. No dissents were noted.
As the Supreme Court considers whether to take up the Trump administration’s appeal, the question remains whether still-secret aspects of the Russia inquiry will remain under wraps until after the 2020 election.
DOJ Solicitor General Noel Francisco made the request in early May, asking the justices to weigh in on a case that would pose “substantial constitutional difficulties.” Additionally, the Justice Department argued that breaching grand jury secrecy could have severe consequences for future witnesses wishing to testify.
This came after the D.C. Appeals Court issued a 2-1 decision in March, which ruled that the grand jury materials are court records, not DOJ records, that historically have been released to Congress in the course of impeachment investigations.
“The Committee has repeatedly stated that if the grand jury materials reveal new evidence of impeachable offenses, the Committee may recommend new articles of impeachment,” wrote Judge Judith Rogers for the appeals court’s March decision.
The House Judiciary Committee told the Supreme Court earlier this week it needs the records to decide whether to impeach President Trump over his alleged obstruction of the Russia investigation.
“If this material reveals new evidence supporting the conclusion that President Trump committed impeachable offenses that are not covered by the Articles adopted by the House, the Committee will proceed accordingly — including, if necessary, by considering whether to recommend new articles of impeachment,” the panel’s counsel, Douglas Letter, wrote in a 33-page motion to the Supreme Court.
Mueller released his report on Russian election interference in April 2019, showing his team did not find evidence of criminal conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia. His team did find substantial evidence that Russian actors actively attempted to influence the election and laid out 10 instances of possible obstruction of justice.
U.S. Attorney John Durham, who was appointed by Attorney General William Barr, is looking into the origins of the Trump-Russia investigation.
