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Lead Prosecutor Removed from Investigation into Former CIA Director John Brennan

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Lead Prosecutor Reassigned in Probe of Former CIA Director Brennan

The U.S. Department of Justice has reassigned the lead prosecutor overseeing the criminal investigation into whether former CIA Director John Brennan lied to Congress. The investigation stems from a 2023 congressional referral concerning Brennan's testimony about a 2017 intelligence assessment on Russian election interference.

Personnel Change

On Friday, career prosecutor Maria Medetis Long notified attorneys involved in the case that she was no longer handling the investigation. Medetis Long is the National Security Section Chief in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida. A Justice Department spokesperson confirmed the personnel change, stating that Medetis Long remains employed by the department.

The Justice Department stated that moving attorneys between cases is a routine practice to allocate resources effectively.

Medetis Long referred all inquiries to a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office. That office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Context of the Investigation

The investigation was initiated following an October 2023 referral from the Republican-led House Judiciary Committee. The referral alleges that Brennan provided false testimony to Congress regarding the CIA's role in crafting a 2017 intelligence community assessment on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

  • Specifically, the committee's chairman, Rep. Jim Jordan, has claimed Brennan falsely denied the CIA relied on the so-called Steele dossier during the drafting of that assessment.
  • Prosecutors are examining whether Brennan's 2023 testimony constituted perjury regarding events from 2016 and 2017.

Reasons for the Reassignment

Different sources have provided varying accounts of the reason for the prosecutor's reassignment.

  • According to people briefed on the matter, the change occurred after Medetis Long resisted pressure to bring charges against Brennan more quickly.
  • A separate source familiar with the matter stated the removal happened after Medetis Long informed U.S. Attorney Jason Reding Quiñones that she did not believe there was sufficient evidence to make a case.
  • Sources have previously indicated that career prosecutors on the case have expressed the view that the case against Brennan is not strong, while continuing to work toward a potential indictment.

Ongoing Investigation and Next Steps

The investigation remains active. Investigators have recently conducted witness interviews and issued new subpoenas.

  • Among the attorneys now assigned to the case is Chris DeLorenz, a department official confirmed. DeLorenz recently moved from Washington to serve as an assistant U.S. attorney in Miami.
  • A former CIA official is scheduled to be interviewed by federal prosecutors and FBI agents in early May. This person is described as a witness, not a target, and has been interviewed previously. The interview is expected to cover the decision to include the Steele dossier in the 2017 assessment's annex and internal disagreements among CIA officials over the assessment's conclusions.

Related Probes

The U.S. attorney's office in Miami is handling other related matters.

  • It is investigating a separate referral from Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who claimed that Brennan and other Obama-era officials "manufactured" the 2017 assessment.
  • The same office is also separately reviewing documents connected to former special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into former President Donald Trump.