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Grand Jury Refuses to Indict Video Dems02/11 06:02
A grand jury in Washington refused Tuesday to indict Democratic lawmakers in
connection with a video in which they urged U.S. military members to resist
"illegal orders," according to a person familiar with the matter.
WASHINGTON (AP) -- A grand jury in Washington refused Tuesday to indict
Democratic lawmakers in connection with a video in which they urged U.S.
military members to resist "illegal orders," according to a person familiar
with the matter.
The Justice Department opened an investigation into the video featuring
Democratic Sens. Mark Kelly and Elissa Slotkin and four other Democratic
lawmakers urging U.S. service members to follow established military protocols
and reject orders they believe to be unlawful. All the lawmakers previously
served in the military or at intelligence agencies.
Grand jurors in Washington declined to sign off on charges in the latest of
a series of rebukes of prosecutors by citizens in the nation's capital,
according to the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they
were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter. It wasn't immediately clear
whether prosecutors had sought indictments against all six lawmakers or what
charge or charges prosecutors attempted to bring.
Grand jury rejections are extraordinarily unusual, but have happened
repeatedly in recent months in Washington as citizens who have heard the
government's evidence have come away underwhelmed in a number of cases.
Prosecutors could try again to secure an indictment.
Spokespeople for the U.S. attorney's office and the Justice Department
didn't immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday.
The FBI in November began contacting the lawmakers to schedule interviews,
outreach that came against the backdrop of broader Justice Department efforts
to punish political opponents of the president. President Donald Trump and his
aides labeled the lawmakers' video as "seditious" -- and Trump said on his
social media account that the offense was "punishable by death."
Besides Slotkin and Kelly, the other Democrats who appeared in the video
include Reps. Jason Crow of Colorado, Chrissy Houlahan of Pennsylvania, Maggie
Goodlander of New Hampshire and Chris Deluzio of Pennsylvania.
Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who represents Michigan, said late Tuesday
that she hopes this ends the Justice Department's probe.
"Tonight we can score one for the Constitution, our freedom of speech, and
the rule of law," Slotkin said in a statement. "But today wasn't just an
embarrassing day for the Administration. It was another sad day for our
country," she said.
Kelly, a former Navy pilot who represents Arizona, called the attempt to
bring charges an "outrageous abuse of power by Donald Trump and his lackies."
"Donald Trump wants every American to be too scared to speak out against
him," Kelly said in a post on X. "The most patriotic thing any of us can do is
not back down."
In November, the Pentagon opened an investigation into Kelly, citing a
federal law that allows retired service members to be recalled to active duty
on orders of the defense secretary for possible court-martial or other
punishment. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has censured Kelly for participating
in the video and is trying to retroactively demote Kelly from his retired rank
of captain.
The senator is suing Hegseth to block those proceedings, calling them an
unconstitutional act of retribution. During a hearing last week, the judge
appeared to be skeptical of key arguments that a government attorney made in
defense of Kelly's Jan. 5 censure by Hegseth.
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