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Inspector General Reports
Investigations
Other Reports

Inspector General Reports

Inspectors general in multiple federal agencies have launched investigations in connection with the Jan. 6 insurrection. Below are reports from some of these investigations

Defense Department

Department of Homeland Security

  • DHS IG Report: Intelligence division failed to share information about known violent threats in advance of Jan. 6 (March 4, 2022)
    • The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General found that three different divisions with in the Office of Intelligence and Analysis failed to share with state, local, and federal partners important information about threats of violence on January 6. In multiple instances, I&A analysts collected open-source information about threats but did not issue reports. I&A did email information about potential threats to local Washington, D.C. partners, but this information "was not as widely disseminated as I&A's typical intelligence products." The Report concluded that the failure resulted from a number of factors, including inexperienced analysts, inadequate training, and hesitancy to report. It made five recommendations for rectifying the root causes, all of which DHS has adopted.
  • Letter to the House and Senate Homeland Security committees reporting that the U.S. Secret Service erased text messages sent and received on Jan. 5 and Jan. 6, 2021. (July 14, 2022)
    • On July 13, 2022, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General sent a letter to the House Committee on Homeland Security and the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs reporting that the U.S. Secret Service had deleted text messages from Jan. 5 and Jan. 6, 2021. In the letter, the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General wrote that the Secret Service deleted the text messages after the Office of the Inspector General requested access to the agency’s electronic communications. 

U.S. Capitol Police

U.S. Government Accountability Office

  • GAO Report: Actions Needed to Prepare the Capitol Police for Violent Demostrations (March 2022)
    • The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review a number of issues relating to the January 6, 2021 Capitol Attack, including the preparation and performance of the Capitol Police on the day of the attack, as well as what changes were necessary to prevent a future attack. On March 7, 2022, GAO released its fourth report, which summarizes its findings and recommendations after a survey of Capitol Police officers who had been working the day of the January 6, 2021 Capitol Attack.

Investigations

Fulton County Special Grand Jury

The Fulton County Special Grand Jury was approved and created at the request of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willi in Jan. 2022 to aide in her investigation of alleged attempts by former President Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. The special grand jury holds invesitgative authority and the ability to subpoena individuals. It is composed of 23 grand jurors and three alternates, and is oversaw by Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney.

  • Certificates of material witness pursuant to uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for Sen. Lindsey Graham, Rudolph Giuliani, John Eastman, Kenneth Chesebro, Cleta Mitchell, Jenna Ellis, and Jacki Pick Deason. (July 5, 2022)
    • On July 5, Fulton County (Georgia) District Attorney Fani Willis issued certificates of material witness pursuant to uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to six Trump Campaign lawyers and Sen. Lindsey Graham to appear before a Special Purpose Grand Jury in Atlanta investigating “a multi-state, coordinated plan by the Trump Campaign to influence the results of the November 2020 election in Georgia and elsewhere.” The lawyers issued certificates are Rudolph Giuliani, John Eastman, Kenneth Chesebro, Cleta Mitchell, Jenna Ellis, and Jacki Pick Deason (also known as Jacki Lynn Pick). The documents mention the witnesses’ alleged involvement in a number of schemes to influence the presidential election result in Georgia, including former President Trump’s Jan. 2 phone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger asking him to “find 11,780 votes” in his favor; appearances before the Georgia State Senate making false, debunked claims about “suitcases” full of unlawful ballots having been counted on election night at State Farm Arena in Atlanta; and participation in a scheme to certify a false set of pro-Trump electors despite then candidate Biden’s victory in that state. Sen. Graham was issued a certificate because of two phone calls he allegedly placed to Raffensperger and his staff. The orders seek the witnesses’ appearance before the grand jury between July 12 and August 31.  (Because the witnesses are located out of state, Willis used a procedure known as the Uniform Act to Secure the Attendance of Witnesses from Without the State. Following those procedures, she obtained state court orders in Georgia, called Certificates of Material Witness, which will be presented to a state court in the witness’s home state, which, in turn, would ordinarily command the witness’s appearance before the Georgia grand jury.)
      • Expedited Motion to Quash and Memorandum in Support by Lindsey Graham (July 13, 2022)
        • Sen. Graham filed a motion in federal court to quash the certificate from Georgia state court compelling his testimony before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. He argues that " (1) the Constitution’s Speech or Debate Clause protects him from this legal process, (2) sovereign immunity prohibits enforcement of the state court process on him as a federal officer, and (3) no extraordinary circumstances exist for compelling his testimony."
          • Repsonse in Opposition to Material Witness Sen. Lindsey Graham's Expeditied Motion to Quash (Aug. 4, 2022)
            • On Aug. 4, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed a response to Graham's motion to quash a certificate of material witness pursuant to uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state. Willis argues in the response that Graham's "actions certainly appear interconnected with former President Trump’s similar efforts to pressure Georgia election officials into 'finding 11,780 votes'..."
          • In re subpoena to non-party Lindsey O. Graham Post-Hearing Reply Brief on Behalf of the Special Purpose Grand Jury (Aug. 12, 2022)
            • On Aug. 12, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis requested that the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division deny Sen. Graham's motion to quash a certificate of material witness pursuant to uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state that would force him to testify before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. In the brief, Willis argued that the court must deny Graham's motion becuase of Graham's alleged attempts to pressure local election officials to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. 
          • Order on Sen. Lindsey Graham's Expedited Motion to Quash (Aug. 15, 2022)
            • On Aug. 15, 2022, a federal judge denied Sen. Lindsey Grahams motion to to quash a certificate of material witness pursuant to uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. The court found that "District Attorney [Fani Willis] has shown extraordinary circumstances and a special need for Senator Graham’s testimony on issues relating to alleged attempts to influence or disrupt the lawful administration of Georgia’s 2022 elections." The judge also provided examples of potential testimony Graham could provide that would not be in violtion of the Constitution's Speech or Debate Clause.
          • Graham's Emergency Motion to Stay Order and Enjoin Select Grand Jury Proceedings Pending Appeal (Aug. 17, 2022)
          • Memorandum of Law in Support of Sen. Lindsey Graham's Emergency Motion to Stay Order and Enjoin Select Grand Jury Proceedings Pending Appeal (Aug. 17, 2022)
            • On Aug. 17, 2022, Sen. Lindsey Graham requested that a federal judge impose a stay on a previous order by a federal judge requiring the senator to testify before the special grand jury. 
          • Response in Opposition to Sen. Lindsey Graham's Emergency Motion to Stay and Enjoin Select Grand Jury Proceedings Pending Appeal (Aug. 19, 2022)
            • On Aug. 19, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed a response in opposition to Graham's emergency motion to stay on an order issued by a federal judge to appear and testify before the special grand jury. In the filing, Willis argued that a further delay of Graham's testimony could "delay the revelation of an entire category of relevant witnesses or information," and would "significantly harm the interests and administration of the [grand jury]."
          • Order on Subpoena to Non-Party Lindsey O. Graham (Aug. 19, 2020)
            • On Aug. 19, 2022, U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May denied Graham's emergency motion to stay and emergency motion for hearing. In otherwords, Judge May ordered that Graham should comply with his subpoena, and should not be permitted to further delay his appearance before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. 
          • Graham's Notice of Appeal (Aug. 17, 2022)
            • On Aug. 17, 2022, Graham appealed U.S. District Court Judge Leigh Martin May's Aug. 15, 2022, ruling that rejected the senator's motion to quash a subpoena for testimony issued by the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. Graham appealed the district judge's ruling to the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit. 
          • Response in Opposition to Sen. Lindsey O. Graham's Emergency Motion to Stay District Court's Order and Enjoin Select Grand Jury Proceedings Pending Appeal (Aug. 22, 2022)
            • On Aug. 22, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit to uphold the district judge's ruling to deny Graham's motion to stay to delay his appearance before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. 
          • U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruling on Graham's appeal from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (Aug. 22, 2022)

            • On Aug. 22, 2022, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit temporarily blocked a subpoena from an Atlanta grand jury demanding that Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) testify about his role in an effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Graham had appealed to the 11th Circuit after U.S. District Judge Leigh Martin May denied his bid to avoid testifying before a grand jury in Georgia on Aug. 15. The 11th Circuit’s two-page order will send the case back to Judge May to consider whether Graham “is entitled to a partial quashal or modification of the subpoena to appear before the special purpose grand jury based on any protections afforded by the Speech or Debate Clause” of the Constitution.

          • Response in Opposition to Sen. Graham's Supplemental Motion (Aug. 29, 2022)

            • On Aug. 29, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed a response to the 11th Circuit's ruling to grant a temporary stay for the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta division to "address the question of whether Sen. Graham is entitled to 'partial quashal' of his subpoena," or in other words, the 11th Circuit's ruling to temporarily block a supoena demanding his testimony before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. In the response, Willis argues that the subpoena issued by the special grand jury "does not require the disclosure of privileged or other protected matter" and therefore the Graham's motion should be denied. 

          • Order to deny Sen. Graham's Supplemental Motion to Quash (Sept. 1, 2022)

            • A federal judge on Sep. 1 denied Graham’s attempt to fully quash a grand jury subpoena issued as part of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’s probe into efforts to interfere with Georgia’s 2020 elections. However, U.S. District Court Judge Leigh Martin May accepted Graham’s claim that he is immune from questioning related to aspects of his conversations with election officials about legislative activities. Graham argued in his motion that Willis’s expected questioning about two of his phone calls with Georgia election officials following the November election primarily concerned legislative conduct. Therefore, Graham asserted, the speech or debate clause in Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution precludes Willis from questioning Graham about these conversations. May reasoned that although the speech and debate clause prohibits questions concerning legislative work, Graham could be questioned about any alleged activity on the calls related to “whether he in fact implied, suggested, or otherwise indicated that Secretary Raffensperger (or other Georgia election officials) throw out ballots or otherwise alter their election procedures (including in ways that would alter election results).” May also rejected Graham’s arguments that he should be immune from questioning regarding his public statements concerning the 2020 election, his attempts to influence Georgia election officials to alter their election-related conduct, and his communications with the Trump campaign concerning its post-election activities in Georgia.

          • Eleventh Circuit Order Denying Graham's motion to stay and enjoin select grand jury proceedings pending appeal (Oct. 20, 2022)

            • A unanimous panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled that prosecutors for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis can force Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) to testify before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury investigating the alleged attempts of former President Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. In this instance, the special grand jury is seeking Graham’s testimony about phone calls he made to Georgia officials allegedly pressuring them to comply with Trump’s scheme. In a six page order, the 11th Circuit panel rejected Graham’s emergency motion to stay an Aug. 19 district court order requiring him to testify before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury, finding that Graham’s claims of total immunity under the Speech or Debate Clause were invalid. More specifically, the court ruled that Georgia prosecutors could question Graham about the phone calls, as well as “communications and coordination with the Trump campaign regarding its post-election efforts in Georgia, public statements regarding the 2020 election, and efforts to ‘cajole’ or ‘exhort’ Georgia election officials.” The panel, however, found that Graham can still assert the Speech or Debate Clause privilege in response to specific questions about his phone calls that he feels may be probing investigatory conduct. These disputes are to be litigated in the future.

          • Graham's Emergency Application for Stay and Injunction Pending Appeal (Oct. 21, 2022) 

            • Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is seeking an emergency stay pending appeal from the Supreme Court of the Eleventh Circuit's Oct. 20 decision on the Fulton County Special Grand Jury proceedings. That decision allowed Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to compel his testimony in the ongoing Fulton County Special Grand Jury investigation into 2020 election interference in Georgia. Graham's application to the Supreme Court described the call to testify as an unconstitutional attempt "by a local Georgia prosecutor and her ad hoc investigative body" to question a senator about protected speech surrounding "legislative activity and official acts"—speech protected under the Speech and Debate Clause, according to Graham.

          • Clarence Thomas's order granting administrative stay of the Eleventh Circuit Court’s order (Oct. 24, 2022)

            • On Oct. 24, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas issued an administrative stay of the 11th Circuit Court’s order forcing Sen. Lindsey Graham to testify before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury investigating the alleged attempts of former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. Thomas—who supervises the 11th Circuit—handed the order down individually.

          • Supreme Court order denying Graham's emergency application for stay and injunction pending appeal (Nov. 1, 2022)

            • The Supreme Court denied Graham's emergency application for stay and injunction pending appeal of the of the Eleventh Circuit's Oct. 20 decision that prosecutors for Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis can force the senator to testify before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury investigating the alleged attempts of former President Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia. The Supreme Court found, with no noted dissent, that Graham can be forced to testify before the special grand jury, but cannot be questioned about legislative activity protected by the Speech or Debate Clause.

      • Notice of Order to Appear and Testify before the special grand jury for Rudolph Giuliani (July 20, 2022)
      • Motion to Quash Grand Jury Subpoena by Kenneth Chesebro (Aug. 25, 2022)
        • On Aug. 25, 2022, attorney Kenneth Chesebro filed a motion to quash a subpoena demanding his testimony before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. In the filing, Chesebro argued that the subpoena is likely seeking testimony that would violate attorney-client privilege and his duty of confidentialty, due to his status as a former attorney for the Trump campaign. According to the filing, Chesebro argues that any testimony he would be required to provide to the special grand jury would "potentially be embarrassing and/or detrimental to his former client."
          • Order Denying Motion to Quash (Aug. 29, 2022)
            • On Aug. 29, 2022, Judge Robert C.I. McBurney of the Superior Court of Fulton County Atlanta Judicial Circut denied attorney Kenneth Chesebro's motion to quash a subpoena for his testimony before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. In the order, McBurney wrote that there are areas of interest to the special Grand purpose jury that are "not off-limits" or in other words do no voilate attorney-client privilege as Chesebro argued his testimony would in his motion to quash the subpoena. These "areas of interest" include: Chesebro's background, his "interactions with party officials inn Georgia following the 2020 general election," and more. 
  • Rep. Jody Hice's motion to remove his subpoena litigation to federal court (July 18, 2022)
    • On June 29, 2022, Rep. Jody Hice was subpoenaed to appear before the Special Purpose Grand Jury that has been convened in Fulton County at the behest off Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. The subpoena calls for him to appear on July 19, 2022. The grand jury, authorized last January and convened in May, is investigating “potential disruptions to the lawful administration of the 2020 elections in the State of Georgia, including the election of the president of the United States,” according to the order of the Superior Court of Fulton County authorizing its creation. According to Hice's notice of removal, filed with the Fulton County Superior Court on July 18, 2022, Hice removed his subpoena case to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia on July 15, 2022, citing the federal officer removal statute, 28 U.S.C. §1442. (The state court “notice of removal” and accompanying documents were was first published by Politico.) Hice presumably intends to move to quash the subpoena in federal court—perhaps invoking Speech and Debate Clause immunity—but PACER does not yet reflect any of Hice’s federal filings.
  • Motion to Quash Subpoena Issued to Brian P. Kemp and Memorandum In Support (Aug. 17, 2022)
    • On Aug. 17, 2022, Georgia Governor Brian P. Kemp filed a motion to quash a subpoena issued by the Fulton County district attorney to appear and testify the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. According to the filing, Kemp claimed that the subpoena is barred by soverign immunity, violates attorney-client privilege, and is "being pursued...for impromper political purposes."
      • Response in Opposition to Witnness Governor Brian P. Kemp's Motion to Quash (Aug. 23, 2022)
        • On Aug. 23, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis filed a response to Kemp's motion to quash a subpoena requiring that he testify before the Fulton County Grand Jury. In the filing, Willis argued that Kemp's testimony is "unquestionably relevant, material, and necessary" to the grand jury investigation. Willis specified that Kemp likely has information—that is not protected by executive privilege—regarding "the existence of any evidence the Trump campaign provided to support their theory that Georgia's election was 'rigged'", the identiftes of people involved with the alleged scheme, his correspondence with Trump, and more. 
      • Order Denying Motion to Quash (Aug. 29, 2022)
        • On Aug. 29, 2022, Judge Robert C.I. McBurney of the Superior Court of Fulton County Atlanta Judicial Circuit denied Georgia Governor Brian Kemp's motion to quash a subpoena demanding his testimony before the Fulton County Special Grand Jury. Judge McBurney did, however, agree to delay Kemp's testimony until after Geogia's Nov. 8, 2022, gubernatorial election, in which Kemp is running for reelection. "The Governor is in the midst of a re-election campaign and this criminal grand jury investigation should not be used by the District Attorney, the Governor’s opponent, or the Governor himself to influence the outcome of that election," the judge wrote.
  • Petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for Mark Meadows (Aug. 25, 2022)
    • On Aug. 25, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis issued a petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to appear before the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury investigating “a multi-state, coordinated plan by the Trump Campaign to influence the results of the November 2020 election in Georgia and elsewhere.” Willis ordered Meadows to appear before the special purpose grand jury on Sept. 27, 2022. According to the filing, the special grand jury is seeking Meadows's testimony about his "surprise visit" to a location at which the Georgia secretary of state's office and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation were conducting a ballot signature match audit, emails he sent to Justice Department oficials making "various allegations of voter fraud in Georgia", a "lengthy telephone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and others to discuss voter fraud allegations in Georgia", and more.
      • Meadows's response to Willis’s petition for attendance of out of state witness (Oct. 24, 2022)
        • On Oct. 24, 2022, attorneys representing former Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows filed a response to Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis’ subpoena compelling Meadows' appearance before the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury. In his response, Meadows argues that the court should deny the “request to compel his attendance in Fulton County” because the subpoena issued by the special grand jury does not apply to a civil inquiry. He also argues that due to his assertion of executive privilege in separate litigation in federal court (in Meadows v. Pelosi), he is not classified as a material witness under the Uniform Act to Secure the Attendance of Witnesses from Without the State in the Fulton County investigation, and that the subpoena “requiring appearance on September 27, 2022, is now moot.”
  • Petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for Sidney Powell (Aug. 25, 2022)
    • On Aug. 25, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis issued a petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to attorney Sidney Powell to appear before the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury. Willis ordered Powell to appear before the special purpose grand jury on Sept. 22, 2022. According to the filing, the special grand jury is seeking Powell's testimony about her the "logistics, planning, and outcome of efforts to obtain elections data in Georgia and elswhere."
  • Petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for James Phil Waldron (Aug. 25, 2022)
    • On Aug. 25, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis issued a petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to cyber researcher James Phil Waldron to appear before the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury. Willis ordered Waldron to appear before the special purpose grand jury on Sept. 22, 2022. According to the filing, the special grand jury is seeking Waldron's testimony about his correspondence with Meadows, Giuliani, and Graham, his previous testimony before a Georgia State Senate subcommittee meeting about the "purported vulnerabilities of the Dominion Voting Systems voting machines used throughout Georgia during the Nov. 2020 election", and more.
  • Petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for Boris Epshteyn (Aug. 24, 2022)
    • On Aug. 25, 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis issued a petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to Trump adviser Boris Epshteyn to appear before the Fulton County Special Purpose Grand Jury. Willis ordered Waldron to appear before the special purpose grand jury on Sept. 21, 2022. According to the filing, the special grand jury is seeking Epshteyn's testimony about his time as an aide to the Trump campaign in the weeks following the 2020 presidential election, and his declared involvement in "a plan organized by the Trump [c]ampaign to have individuals purporting to be duly elected and qualified presidential electors submit false certificates of vote to former Vice President Michael Pence and others.
  • Petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state for Willie Lewis Floyd III (Sept. 2, 2022)
    • On Sept. 2022, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis issued a petition for certification of need for testimony before the special purpose grand jury pursuant to the uniform act to secure the attendance of witnesses from without the state to Black Voices for Trump leader Willie Lewis Floyd. Willis ordered Floyd to appear before the special purpose grand jury on Sept. 28, 2022. According to the filing, he special grand jury is seeking Floyd's testimony about telephone calls he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger.

Justice Department

"Fake Electors" Probe

The Justice Department is reportedly investigating a plot allegedly put forward by former President Trump and his supporters to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election using “alternate” slates of state electors. The Justice Department has issued numerous subpoenas (not all of which have been made public) to gain access to information about the alleged attempt to carry out the scheme in seven electoral battleground states.

  • Subpoenas

Other

Other Reports

  • Report of U.S. Army Operations on January 6, 2021 (March 18, 2021)
    • This report, written by the Department of the Army, details the Army's claims about its conduct and that of the D.C. National Guard on Jan. 6. Some of the material has been alleged by current and former Guard officials to be false.