Updated Jan 14, 2025 - Politics & Policy

READ: Jack Smith's final report on Trump's Jan. 6 case

Avery Lotz

Jack Smith arrives before giving remarks, carrying a folder full of papers. — Special Counsel Jack Smith arrives to give remarks on a recently unsealed indictment including four felony counts against Trump on August 1, 2023, in Washington, D.C. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

The Department of Justice's final report on President-elect Trump's dismissed federal election subversion case was published early Tuesday, revealing new details of special counsel Jack Smith's investigation.

Why it matters: Smith claims in the report less than two weeks from Trump's inauguration that he could have secured a conviction if the Republican leader hadn't won November's election and the case had gone to trial.

Trump wanted the final report kept secret, but Attorney General Merrick Garland defied the president-elect in one of his final acts in the Biden administration and sent the 137-page document to Congress.

Zoom out: The release of volume one of Smith's final report follows a lengthy legal battle after Trump's lawyers sought to stop it being made public.

Volume two of Smith's report, on Trump's federal classified documents case, remains sealed after U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon barred the DOJ from releasing a final investigative report or any drafts.
Cannon, whom Trump appointed when he was in office, has been accused of bias in her handling of the case.
However, on Monday she ordered a hearing later this week on whether to release the second part of the report.

Flashback: Smith's original Jan. 6 indictment charged Trump with four counts, including "conspiracy to defraud" the U.S.

It was unsealed in 2023, less than two months after Smith first brought charges against the president-elect over his alleged mishandling of classified documents.
Last August, Smith filed a superseding indictment in the Jan. 6 case, paring down the original findings to account for the Supreme Court's July ruling that presidents have immunity for "official acts."
But after Trump won the 2024 election, Smith moved to drop his two federal cases against Trump, noting the longstanding DOJ policy that a sitting president can't be prosecuted.

Read Smith's report in full, via DocumentCloud:

Go deeper: Trump asks Supreme Court to block hush money sentencing

Add Axios on Google

READ: Jack Smith's final report on Trump's Jan. 6 case

What to read next