Ben Penn
@benjaminpenn.bsky.social
Bloomberg Law reporter covering the Justice Department
Bpenn@bloombergindustry.com
Signal: benpenn.06
Bpenn@bloombergindustry.com
Signal: benpenn.06
Pinned
Ben Penn
@benjaminpenn.bsky.social
· Nov 10
DOJ Miami Office Readies Conspiracy Probe Into Trump Enemies (2)
The South Florida US attorney’s office is recruiting prosecutors and restructuring its chain of command in preparation for a grand jury investigation expected to target former Justice Department offic...
news.bloomberglaw.com
Re-upping this on life inside the DOJ Miami office that’s become ground zero for Trump enemies prosecutions: resignations, recruiting outsourced to a voter fraud conspiracist, crim chief walled off after Posobiec post. Tensions continue to rise. My story:
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Updated with Jeanine Pirro's statement praising prosecutor who tried to indict 6 Dems: "Any attempt to undercut his expertise is nothing more than an effort to detract from his excellent prosecutorial record to which few can compare. And by the way, everybody has a hobby."
NEWS: DOJ lawyer who tried & failed to indict 6 Dem lawmakers over military video runs an active dance photography studio & worked for US Atty Pirro decades ago. Grand jury rejected indictment from lawyers w/ no prior DOJ backgrounds. Experts were walled off. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Pirro Enlists Dance Photographer-Lawyer in Lawmaker Video Case
Washington’s US Attorney Jeanine Pirro tapped a dance photographer who worked for her decades ago as one of the prosecutors who tried—and failed—to convince a grand jury to indict six Democratic lawma...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Updated with Jeanine Pirro's statement praising prosecutor who tried to indict 6 Dems: "Any attempt to undercut his expertise is nothing more than an effort to detract from his excellent prosecutorial record to which few can compare. And by the way, everybody has a hobby."
Apologies - we are correcting the story to note that Carlton Davis, the other Pirro hire who presented this case to grand jury yesterday, was briefly an EDVA line prosecutor in 2018.
NEWS: DOJ lawyer who tried & failed to indict 6 Dem lawmakers over military video runs an active dance photography studio & worked for US Atty Pirro decades ago. Grand jury rejected indictment from lawyers w/ no prior DOJ backgrounds. Experts were walled off. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Pirro Enlists Dance Photographer-Lawyer in Lawmaker Video Case
Washington’s US Attorney Jeanine Pirro tapped a dance photographer who worked for her decades ago as one of the prosecutors who tried—and failed—to convince a grand jury to indict six Democratic lawma...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 11, 2026 at 7:22 PM
Apologies - we are correcting the story to note that Carlton Davis, the other Pirro hire who presented this case to grand jury yesterday, was briefly an EDVA line prosecutor in 2018.
NEWS: DOJ lawyer who tried & failed to indict 6 Dem lawmakers over military video runs an active dance photography studio & worked for US Atty Pirro decades ago. Grand jury rejected indictment from lawyers w/ no prior DOJ backgrounds. Experts were walled off. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Pirro Enlists Dance Photographer-Lawyer in Lawmaker Video Case
Washington’s US Attorney Jeanine Pirro tapped a dance photographer who worked for her decades ago as one of the prosecutors who tried—and failed—to convince a grand jury to indict six Democratic lawma...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 11, 2026 at 5:49 PM
NEWS: DOJ lawyer who tried & failed to indict 6 Dem lawmakers over military video runs an active dance photography studio & worked for US Atty Pirro decades ago. Grand jury rejected indictment from lawyers w/ no prior DOJ backgrounds. Experts were walled off. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ spox confirms judicial impeachment effort in statement: “The Dept. of Justice solicited the most egregious examples of this obstruction from our US Attorney Offices to assist Congress with efforts to rein in judges violating their oaths"
Scoop: A Trump DOJ official recently asked all US attorneys for examples of perceived judicial activism -- i.e., adverse rulings -- to inform potential impeachment referrals to Congress. This would escalate DOJ's clash with the bench. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Trump DOJ Seeks Judicial Impeachment Fodder From Top Prosecutors
A Trump Justice Department official is soliciting examples of perceived judicial activism from all US attorney’s offices to inform potential impeachment referrals to Congress, portending an escalation...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 10, 2026 at 8:11 PM
DOJ spox confirms judicial impeachment effort in statement: “The Dept. of Justice solicited the most egregious examples of this obstruction from our US Attorney Offices to assist Congress with efforts to rein in judges violating their oaths"
Scoop: A Trump DOJ official recently asked all US attorneys for examples of perceived judicial activism -- i.e., adverse rulings -- to inform potential impeachment referrals to Congress. This would escalate DOJ's clash with the bench. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Trump DOJ Seeks Judicial Impeachment Fodder From Top Prosecutors
A Trump Justice Department official is soliciting examples of perceived judicial activism from all US attorney’s offices to inform potential impeachment referrals to Congress, portending an escalation...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 10, 2026 at 5:15 PM
Scoop: A Trump DOJ official recently asked all US attorneys for examples of perceived judicial activism -- i.e., adverse rulings -- to inform potential impeachment referrals to Congress. This would escalate DOJ's clash with the bench. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Well before DOJ workload crisis defending detained migrant petitions spilled into public view in MN, 6 US attorneys warned judiciary of the resource-draining flood. Predictably, it has since exploded.
Story w/ @ccastronuovo.bsky.social & Megan Crepeau: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Story w/ @ccastronuovo.bsky.social & Megan Crepeau: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
US Attorneys Decry Resource Strain From Migrant Detention Cases
Six US attorneys warned a “flood” of litigation by migrants challenging their detention has created a “substantial drain on the resources” of their offices in declarations filed in December with the U...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 6, 2026 at 3:12 PM
Well before DOJ workload crisis defending detained migrant petitions spilled into public view in MN, 6 US attorneys warned judiciary of the resource-draining flood. Predictably, it has since exploded.
Story w/ @ccastronuovo.bsky.social & Megan Crepeau: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Story w/ @ccastronuovo.bsky.social & Megan Crepeau: news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Exclusive: DOJ is requiring all 93 US attorneys to designate prosecutors for "emergency jump teams" supporting surge districts dealing with assaults & obstruction of federal officers, per internal memo. Comes as more Minn. prosecutors resign. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ Demands Emergency Surge Prosecutors From All US Attorneys
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, accordin...
news.bloomberglaw.com
February 3, 2026 at 8:35 PM
Exclusive: DOJ is requiring all 93 US attorneys to designate prosecutors for "emergency jump teams" supporting surge districts dealing with assaults & obstruction of federal officers, per internal memo. Comes as more Minn. prosecutors resign. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Update - judge orders DOJ to explain how FIFA corruption dismissal would serve interests of justice and impact numerous other convictions and hundreds of millions in penalties news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
January 31, 2026 at 3:29 PM
Update - judge orders DOJ to explain how FIFA corruption dismissal would serve interests of justice and impact numerous other convictions and hundreds of millions in penalties news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Scoop: AG Bondi gave St. Louis US Attorney Thomas Albus special appointment with nationwide authority to probe voter fraud. This explains why Albus, not the Atlanta US attorney, was on FBI's Fulton County search warrant yesterday. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Bondi Hands St. Louis Prosecutor Nationwide Election Fraud Remit
The St. Louis-based US attorney overseeing the FBI search warrant executed on Fulton County’s election office Wednesday received a special appointment by Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate elec...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 29, 2026 at 5:22 PM
Scoop: AG Bondi gave St. Louis US Attorney Thomas Albus special appointment with nationwide authority to probe voter fraud. This explains why Albus, not the Atlanta US attorney, was on FBI's Fulton County search warrant yesterday. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Exclusive: Sen. Grassley sends sharply-worded oversight letter to Labor Sec. Chavez-DeRemer over ethics scandal, a shift from Judiciary Chairman's protection of Trump appointees facing misconduct claims & sign she's losing support from Rs. W/ Tre'Vaughn Howard: news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-...
Grassley Probes Labor Secretary Over Misconduct Allegations
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is pressing Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer to respond to allegations that she committed travel fraud and had an inappropriate relationship with a staffer, marking the...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 29, 2026 at 2:46 PM
Exclusive: Sen. Grassley sends sharply-worded oversight letter to Labor Sec. Chavez-DeRemer over ethics scandal, a shift from Judiciary Chairman's protection of Trump appointees facing misconduct claims & sign she's losing support from Rs. W/ Tre'Vaughn Howard: news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-...
NEW: Justice Dept. inspector general issues annual list of top challenges facing DOJ that strips reference to political motivation that was a core concern in prior reports. This report was 5 times longer last year & warned of accusations of partisanship.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ Watchdog Shuns References to Politicization in Assessment
The Justice Department’s internal watchdog stripped references to political independence in a drastically shortened annual list of challenges leaders face.
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 26, 2026 at 7:16 PM
NEW: Justice Dept. inspector general issues annual list of top challenges facing DOJ that strips reference to political motivation that was a core concern in prior reports. This report was 5 times longer last year & warned of accusations of partisanship.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
News: Kash Patel renews purge of senior FBI officials & agents across US, including some involved in J6 & Mar-a-Lago cases.
Some were investigated by FBI internal misconduct body, which didn't recommend they be fired, but Patel overrode those conclusions.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Some were investigated by FBI internal misconduct body, which didn't recommend they be fired, but Patel overrode those conclusions.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Patel Pushes Out More FBI Leaders and Agents in Renewed Purge
FBI Director Kash Patel resumed terminating and sidelining senior officials and agents from offices across the US this week who were involved in investigations against President Donald Trump or the Ja...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 23, 2026 at 5:59 PM
News: Kash Patel renews purge of senior FBI officials & agents across US, including some involved in J6 & Mar-a-Lago cases.
Some were investigated by FBI internal misconduct body, which didn't recommend they be fired, but Patel overrode those conclusions.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Some were investigated by FBI internal misconduct body, which didn't recommend they be fired, but Patel overrode those conclusions.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
NEW: Justice Dept. informs Congress of a reorg that appears to backtrack from JD Vance's statement that White House will run new fraud division.
Assistant AG for fraud will report to DAG Blanche, not Trump or Vance. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Assistant AG for fraud will report to DAG Blanche, not Trump or Vance. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ Plans Fraud Division Lacking Direct White House Supervision
The Justice Department is carrying out the Trump administration’s fraud division initiative with existing personnel who’d be supervised by the deputy attorney general—a departure from the White House’...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 21, 2026 at 9:00 PM
NEW: Justice Dept. informs Congress of a reorg that appears to backtrack from JD Vance's statement that White House will run new fraud division.
Assistant AG for fraud will report to DAG Blanche, not Trump or Vance. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Assistant AG for fraud will report to DAG Blanche, not Trump or Vance. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Reposted by Ben Penn
NEW: Trump pardon of former Puerto Rico governor failed to include a relevant criminal case
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
Trump pardon of former Puerto Rico governor failed to include a relevant criminal case
The White House said that an additional document pardoning Wanda Vázquez Garced will be signed out of an abundance of caution.
www.nbcnews.com
January 18, 2026 at 6:06 PM
NEW: Trump pardon of former Puerto Rico governor failed to include a relevant criminal case
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
www.nbcnews.com/politics/jus...
One of Trump’s pardons went to Terren Peizer, a healthcare CEO convicted of insider trading in a case prized by prosecutors for showcasing DOJ’s cutting edge use of data analytics to root out fraud. What’s their motivation for pursuing more of these cases? news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
More Data-Driven White-Collar Probes in Pipeline, DOJ Chief Says
The Justice Department’s arrest of a CEO on insider-trading charges illustrates how corporate crime enforcers are escalating their use of data to initiate market integrity investigations, the office’s...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 17, 2026 at 2:17 PM
One of Trump’s pardons went to Terren Peizer, a healthcare CEO convicted of insider trading in a case prized by prosecutors for showcasing DOJ’s cutting edge use of data analytics to root out fraud. What’s their motivation for pursuing more of these cases? news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
NEWS: Trump is about to pardon a wealthy Venezuelan bank owner whose daughter paid $3.5M to MAGA Inc., & the ex-Puerto Rican govenor who'd endorsed Trump in 2020. Prosecutors accused the duo of a bribery scheme.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Trump to Pardon Venezuelan Banker, Ex-Puerto Rico Governor
President Donald Trump plans to pardon Puerto Rico’s former governor and a Venezuelan banker accused of bribery, the president’s latest use of clemency power to nullify a long-running corruption case,...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 16, 2026 at 5:32 PM
NEWS: Trump is about to pardon a wealthy Venezuelan bank owner whose daughter paid $3.5M to MAGA Inc., & the ex-Puerto Rican govenor who'd endorsed Trump in 2020. Prosecutors accused the duo of a bribery scheme.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
News: To replace the Minnesota fed prosecutors who quit in protest, DOJ is sending military lawyers, healthcare fraud specialists, & volunteer line prosecutors from Detroit & LA, per senior official. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Military, Fraud Lawyers Replacing Minnesota Prosecutors Who Quit
The Justice Department is attempting to offset a spike in Minnesota prosecutor resignations by deploying reinforcements from the military, other US attorney offices, and its health care fraud unit, ac...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:17 PM
News: To replace the Minnesota fed prosecutors who quit in protest, DOJ is sending military lawyers, healthcare fraud specialists, & volunteer line prosecutors from Detroit & LA, per senior official. news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Reposted by Ben Penn
This, from @benjaminpenn.bsky.social, is a good update on Epstein review.
But thus far no one is answering Q Pam Bondi probably doesn't want to answer.
DOJ spent 1000s of person-hours in March doing review. What purpose did it serve that it all got scrapped?
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
But thus far no one is answering Q Pam Bondi probably doesn't want to answer.
DOJ spent 1000s of person-hours in March doing review. What purpose did it serve that it all got scrapped?
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
January 13, 2026 at 2:24 PM
This, from @benjaminpenn.bsky.social, is a good update on Epstein review.
But thus far no one is answering Q Pam Bondi probably doesn't want to answer.
DOJ spent 1000s of person-hours in March doing review. What purpose did it serve that it all got scrapped?
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
But thus far no one is answering Q Pam Bondi probably doesn't want to answer.
DOJ spent 1000s of person-hours in March doing review. What purpose did it serve that it all got scrapped?
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Reposted by Ben Penn
Exclusive: DOJ is throwing hundreds of new attorneys at Epstein doc review but officials are frustrated they’re off to “very rocky start” with many issues awaiting guidance & more than two-thirds of 232 Crim Div reviewers failing to hit 1k pages per day mandate news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ’s Epstein Files Staffing Surge Beset by ‘Very Rocky Start’
The Justice Department’s newly expanded team reviewing files related to Jeffrey Epstein has struggled in its mission of expediting the Trump administration’s legally-mandated disclosures, according to...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:40 PM
Exclusive: DOJ is throwing hundreds of new attorneys at Epstein doc review but officials are frustrated they’re off to “very rocky start” with many issues awaiting guidance & more than two-thirds of 232 Crim Div reviewers failing to hit 1k pages per day mandate news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Exclusive: DOJ is throwing hundreds of new attorneys at Epstein doc review but officials are frustrated they’re off to “very rocky start” with many issues awaiting guidance & more than two-thirds of 232 Crim Div reviewers failing to hit 1k pages per day mandate news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ’s Epstein Files Staffing Surge Beset by ‘Very Rocky Start’
The Justice Department’s newly expanded team reviewing files related to Jeffrey Epstein has struggled in its mission of expediting the Trump administration’s legally-mandated disclosures, according to...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 13, 2026 at 1:40 PM
Exclusive: DOJ is throwing hundreds of new attorneys at Epstein doc review but officials are frustrated they’re off to “very rocky start” with many issues awaiting guidance & more than two-thirds of 232 Crim Div reviewers failing to hit 1k pages per day mandate news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Reposted by Ben Penn
The question is whether the White House fraud team will run parallel or duplicative investigations alongside the actual DOJ fraud team #compliance #FCPA #fraud #corpgov
Scoop: DOJ tells existing fraud enforcers they’ll be insulated from White House’s Minnesota-fueled fraud division that’ll report directly to Trump, Vance news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ Fraud Staffers to Be Protected from New White House-Led Unit
The Justice Department plans to insulate its criminal and civil fraud sections from a White House-run enforcement initiative rather than merge them into the newly-established fraud division, according...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 13, 2026 at 12:37 AM
The question is whether the White House fraud team will run parallel or duplicative investigations alongside the actual DOJ fraud team #compliance #FCPA #fraud #corpgov
Scoop: DOJ tells existing fraud enforcers they’ll be insulated from White House’s Minnesota-fueled fraud division that’ll report directly to Trump, Vance news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
DOJ Fraud Staffers to Be Protected from New White House-Led Unit
The Justice Department plans to insulate its criminal and civil fraud sections from a White House-run enforcement initiative rather than merge them into the newly-established fraud division, according...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 13, 2026 at 12:31 AM
Scoop: DOJ tells existing fraud enforcers they’ll be insulated from White House’s Minnesota-fueled fraud division that’ll report directly to Trump, Vance news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
New: JD Vance's announcement of a White House-run DOJ fraud division set off widespread confusion and concerns about a duplicative, politicized effort.
“It seems like whoever had this idea doesn’t really know how DOJ works."
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
“It seems like whoever had this idea doesn’t really know how DOJ works."
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
New DOJ Fraud Chief Position Has Ex-Officials Questioning Motive
The White House plan to directly operate a new Justice Department fraud division generated widespread confusion over what veteran officials criticized as a duplicative, politicized approach to financi...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 9, 2026 at 2:11 PM
New: JD Vance's announcement of a White House-run DOJ fraud division set off widespread confusion and concerns about a duplicative, politicized effort.
“It seems like whoever had this idea doesn’t really know how DOJ works."
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
“It seems like whoever had this idea doesn’t really know how DOJ works."
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Re-upping this story, now that White House's announcement of new assistant atty gen. for fraud seems to supplant this position.
News: A new DOJ criminal chief Tysen Duva was quietly sworn in over the holidays. White House pressure & other political landmines that his departing interim predecessor (a close ally of Todd Blanche) staved off will now challenge Duva, a 1st-time manager.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Political Tension Awaits DOJ’s Unproven Criminal Division Chief
Tysen Duva, the veteran line prosecutor President Donald Trump tapped to lead the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, steps into a powerful role attorneys see as a target for political influence t...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 8, 2026 at 7:44 PM
Re-upping this story, now that White House's announcement of new assistant atty gen. for fraud seems to supplant this position.
Bondi aide Ashley Hayek weighs in after we published: “Baseless accusations & false narratives may help this struggling reporter get more clicks but the truth remains—this Dept of Justice has ended weaponization & does not make politicized decisions like the previous administration.”
News: A new DOJ criminal chief Tysen Duva was quietly sworn in over the holidays. White House pressure & other political landmines that his departing interim predecessor (a close ally of Todd Blanche) staved off will now challenge Duva, a 1st-time manager.
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...
Political Tension Awaits DOJ’s Unproven Criminal Division Chief
Tysen Duva, the veteran line prosecutor President Donald Trump tapped to lead the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, steps into a powerful role attorneys see as a target for political influence t...
news.bloomberglaw.com
January 7, 2026 at 10:53 PM
Bondi aide Ashley Hayek weighs in after we published: “Baseless accusations & false narratives may help this struggling reporter get more clicks but the truth remains—this Dept of Justice has ended weaponization & does not make politicized decisions like the previous administration.”