Jack Smith Denies Charges Amid DOJ Referral from Jim Jordan

Jack Smith, the former Special Counsel, is asserting his innocence following a referral for potential criminal charges by Jim Jordan, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. Jordan, a Republican from Ohio, accused Smith of lying under oath during a deposition in December 2025.

Smith’s lawyers dismissed the claims, describing the referral as ‘meritless’ in a letter addressed to Jordan and Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. The letter, shared by Fox News Digital, highlights Smith’s awareness of the risk that the Justice Department might interpret his testimony as criminal, largely due to past directives from President Trump.

Mr. Smith agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee fully cognizant of the risk that President Trump’s Justice Department would try to find something in his testimony to serve as the basis for a criminal charge.

Smith’s investigation aimed to determine if President Trump and his allies attempted to overturn the 2020 election results and mishandled classified documents. Trump denied any wrongdoing, and the investigations concluded after the 2024 presidential cycle.

Jordan’s letter to Blanche, reported by Fox News Digital, claims that Smith’s responses suggested his team lacked access to privileged text messages from congressional members. Jordan stated that this is inaccurate based on available evidence.

Smith has faced increased scrutiny from Republicans, who argue that he weaponized the DOJ and breached constitutional privacy protections. Documents released by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley disclosed that Smith’s team accessed messages from 44 Congress members and White House staff during the probe.

The investigation included figures like Jordan, Grassley, and other prominent lawmakers. Smith denied examining lawmakers’ text contents, mentioning his team’s focus on telephone call records instead.

Smith’s attorneys criticized the referral, claiming it was because he didn’t disclose non-responsive information during the deposition. They defended Smith’s testimony as being truthful and focused on subpoena questions.

The attorneys maintained that Smith respected constitutional protections, like the speech and debate clause, while obtaining text messages.

This review of text messages did not involve an intrusion by the Executive Branch into the legislative sphere because the text messages were voluntarily sent by members of the Legislative Branch to members of the Executive Branch.

Former President Trump has criticized Smith publicly since his investigation began, labeling him a ‘Trump-hater’ and a ‘thug.’ Trump’s allies describe Smith as a partisan prosecutor targeting the president unfairly.

The Department of Justice acknowledged Jordan’s referral and confirmed it would investigate the charges. Fox News Digital contacted the committee for a reaction to Smith’s letter.