Republican Ohio Rep. Jim Jordan sent a letter Wednesday to Attorney General Merrick Garland calling on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to preserve all records relating to the Department’s disciplinary and personnel actions against deputy U.S. Marshals who defended the courthouse and federal property in Portland, Oregon, from rioters in the summer of 2020.
The Daily Caller first obtained the letter, in which Jordan, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, slammed the Biden administration for not helping law enforcement officers, and said the DOJ has declined to pay for legal counsel for deputy U.S. Marshals to defend themselves in civil suits related to attacks at the courthouse in Portland.
In the letter, Jordan mentioned Republican Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton’s concern with the DOJ on the matter. Cotton and Republican Senators have said the DOJ is placing deputy U.S. Marshals on limited duty and informing them that they are under investigation for their actions in Portland.
In January, Cotton threatened to hold up DOJ nominations, saying the Biden administration may not be representing deputy U.S. Marshals.
“The Biden administration and the far left continue to demonize the brave men and women in uniform. Our federal law enforcement deserve our support — not unfair attacks,” Jordan told the Daily Caller before sending the letter. (RELATED: Far Left Militants In Portland Start Fires, Vandalize Buildings And Toss Unknown Liquids)
READ THE LETTER HERE:
(DAILY CALLER OBTAINED) — … by Henry Rodgers
While trying to protect the courthouse, officers were pelted with rocks, bricks, frozen water bottles and balloons with unknown liquids. The rioters also threw “Molotovs cocktail-style firebombs” and started fires, trying to break into the courthouse.
“You should construe this preservation notice as an instruction to take all reasonable steps to prevent the destruction or alteration, whether intentionally or negligently, of all documents, communications, and other information, including electronic information and metadata, that is or may be potentially responsive to this congressional inquiry. This instruction includes all electronic messages sent using official and personal accounts or devices, including records created using text messages, phone-based message applications, or encryption software,” Jordan wrote in the letter.
The Daily Caller contacted the DOJ about Jordan’s letter to which a DOJ Spokesperson responded by saying: “The Department of Justice is providing direct representation or paying for private counsel for more than 70 law enforcement officers and federal employees in connection with the Portland protests, and strongly supports providing representation for officers acting in the line of duty.”