DOJ U.S. Attorney Resigns After Two Years With No Grand Jury Indictments
Jason Reding Quinone steps down from the controversial probe into President Trump's opponents, joining two other senior officials who have left the department this week.
By Giulia Donovan ·
Working families and civil rights advocates watching the Justice Department face a new leadership vacuum after the head of a major criminal probe resigned on Friday. Jason Reding Quinone, the U.S. attorney for South Florida, has left his post after leading a two-year investigation into alleged efforts to violate President Donald Trump's civil rights. Attorney General Todd Blanche confirmed the departure in a social media post, marking the second high-level exit from the department in 24 hours.
The resignation follows Thursday's departure by Harmeet Dhillon, who led the Civil Rights Division. Blanche also announced that John Eisenberg, the top official in the National Security Division, has stepped down. Eisenberg was a central figure during the first Trump impeachment inquiry over the Ukraine scandal. His office recently shifted resources away from terrorism and espionage cases to focus on immigration enforcement priorities under the current administration.
Quinone's exit ends a period of internal tension within the Justice Department. Sources indicated that DOJ leadership criticized him in private meetings for his lack of progress on the so-called grand conspiracy probe and his frequent trips to Washington, D.C. The investigation, launched to examine whether intelligence officials organized a criminal effort against Trump dating back to the 2016 campaign, has involved numerous targets in legal wrangling over subpoenas and grand jury testimony. Despite these actions, the probe has resulted in zero criminal indictments, a fact that frustrated Trump and other top DOJ officials.
The National Security Division under Eisenberg was also responsible for the classified documents prosecution of former national security adviser John Bolton. Bolton pleaded guilty to that charge earlier this year. The division further handled leak investigations that led to subpoenas for several journalists. With Eisenberg's departure, the division loses a key architect of the administration's legal strategy on foreign interference and national security cases.
Blanche praised Quinone's work in other areas of the law. In his announcement, he expressed gratitude for Quinone's leadership in combating violent crime, drug trafficking, sex trafficking, and transnational crime in South Florida. The U.S. Attorney's office in that district handles a wide range of federal cases, from organized crime rings to white-collar fraud, placing Quinone at the center of local and national legal battles for the past two years.
