DOJ Orders Emergency Surge Prosecutors From All US Attorneys (2)

The Justice Department is requiring all US attorneys to rapidly assign prosecutors for “emergency jump teams” supporting districts handling alleged assaults or obstruction of law enforcement, according to an internal memo obtained by Bloomberg Law.

A senior official instructed leaders of the nation’s 93 US attorney’s offices Feb. 2 that they have until Feb. 6 to designate one or two assistant US attorneys who’d be available for short-term surges in unspecified areas needing “urgent assistance due to emergent or critical situations.” The memo coincides with media reports this week of a new round of mass resignations of federal prosecutors in Minneapolis.

Rather than deploying volunteers to meet the needs of Minnesota or other districts experiencing protests from White House-directed boosts in law enforcement, the “jump teams” are designed to establish a standing list of prosecutors available on a rotating basis, said Francey Hakes, the director of DOJ’s Executive Office for US Attorneys, in her emailed memo.

Hakes’ message signals the Trump administration’s attempt to offset career prosecutor attrition—a recurring pattern in liberal-leaning districts the White House has singled out with military and law enforcement deployments—with a nationwide pool of reinforcements on standby.

The plan is DOJ’s latest effort to temporarily staff up offices at the center of President Donald Trump’s priorities as the department has steadily lost veteran prosecutors the past year. US attorney offices targeted for prior surges, including in Los Angeles, Chicago, and DC, have all experienced significant turnover as grand juries have repeatedly denied their attempts to indict protesters for impeding law enforcement and other charges.

It also comes shortly after Chad Mizelle, the former chief of staff to Attorney General Pam Bondi, solicited on X Jan. 31, “If you are a lawyer, are interested in being an AUSA, and support President Trump and anti-crime agenda, DM me.” Jason Reding Quiñones, US attorney in Miami, shared Mizelle’s post with his own message: “We are hiring!”

Antifa Focus

At least a handful of Minnesota prosecutors resigned last month over concerns of being asked to investigate the widow of Minneapolis protester Renee Good rather than the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who killed her.

The department initially recruited military lawyers to backfill the departing Minnesota prosecutors, who were fired before they could exhaust remaining annual paid leave.

The Feb. 2 memo doesn’t address that incident or Minnesota in general. It states that part of the emergency teams’ focus will be carrying out Attorney General Pam Bondi’s December memo that directed law enforcement to root out antifa and other anti-government groups associated with the left.

Short for anti-fascist, antifa refers to an amorphous collection of people supporting a range of leftist ideologies.

More specifically, each US attorney in large offices was instructed to identify at least two line assistants for the jump team initiative, while smaller to medium-sized offices need only find at least one. The assignments will typically last one or two weeks, Hakes said.

The designated prosecutors aren’t intended to litigate cases, although it’s possible that will be required, the memo added. Instead, they’ll be supporting command-center functions for the US attorney’s office leadership, including logistics, triage referrals, or reviewing complaints and search affidavits.

“The AUSAs designated should be experienced criminal prosecutors who have familiarity with investigating and prosecuting national security offenses, violent crime, or general crimes, as well as familiarity with logistical and coordination issues with a variety of agencies and personnel,” Hakes said.