Denise Cheung, the chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney's Office for Washington, D.C., unexpectedly resigned amid pressure from Trump-appointed officials to freeze assets connected to a Biden administration environmental initiative.
The chief of the criminal division at the U.S. Attorney's Office for Washington, D.C., Denise Cheung, abruptly resigned Tuesday amid pressure from top Trump Justice Department appointees to freeze assets stemming from a Biden administration-era environmental initiative, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.
A resignation letter sent to the office's employees did not detail specific reasons for her sudden departure from the office, but encouraged prosecutors to continue adhering to the Constitution. 'Please continue to support one another, to fulfill your commitment to pursuing justice without fear or prejudice, and to be kind to, and take care of, yourselves,' Cheung said. 'You are the resource our nation has.' Sources familiar with the matter told ABC News that Cheung was under pressure from Department of Justice (DOJ) leadership, including acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove and interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin, to launch a formal criminal investigation into an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funding initiative pursued under the Biden administration. Cheung believed this request lacked the proper predication to initiate a grand jury investigation. The EPA Administrator, Lee Zeldin, has previously addressed with DOJ their effort to rescind contracts tied to the so-called Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund. DOJ's intervention in this process can only come when prosecutors can credibly allege that the funds are tied to a crime. Cheung's resignation comes amid a wave of controversial actions and statements by Martin, who was nominated by Trump as U.S. attorney for Washington, D.C. Martin has represented defendants charged in connection with the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol and was on Capitol grounds himself on that day, though it's unclear whether he ever entered areas officially designated as restricted. These actions have led to growing consternation among career prosecutors.
Politics Trump Administration DOJ Environmental Policy Resignation
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