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1 DOJ Opposes Media Request To Unseal Mar-a-Lago Search Affidavit
The Justice Department is resisting the unsealing of the affidavit behind the search warrant for former President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. In a new court filing, the DOJ said its disclosure would "irreparably harm" the government's ongoing criminal investigation. The department added that it seeks to protect the integrity of the probe that implicates national security. This comes after a push from news organizations – and Trump himself – to release the documents out of public interest. Meanwhile, the FBI is returning passports belonging to Mr. Trump after executing the search warrant on his Mar-a-Lago estate last week. A Justice Department official confirmed the move to multiple outlets Monday, the same day Trump claimed the FBI "stole" his passports during the raid. On Truth Social, the former president called it an "assault on a political opponent at a level never seen before in our country."
2 Slain Texas Soldier Vanessa Guillen's Family Files $35-Million Claim
The family of a soldier who was bludgeoned to death by another soldier has filed a $35-million wrongful death claim against the Army. Vanessa Guillen's family filed the claim one day after the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the military is not protected from damage claims relating to sexual abuse. Guillen was 20 when she was beaten to death in 2020 while serving at Fort Hood, Texas. She enlisted in 2018 and a year later told her family and a few friends about being repeatedly sexually assaulted. A report by the Army included instances of how other soldiers knew Guillen was being singled out and sexually harassed. In a statement, Natalie Khawam, who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the Guillen family, offers, “This will be an opportunity for every victim to feel not only like they have a voice but that they can be made whole.”
3 FBI Locates More Than 100 Children In Trafficking Investigation
The FBI has announced yesterday more than 120 victims were located in Kansas City during “Operation Cross Country.” Authorities located 84 minor victims of child sex trafficking and sexual exploitation, and located 37 missing children nationwide during the two-week operation. More than 140 adult victims were also found. In all, 85 suspects were arrested. “The initiative really just takes a concentrated period of time where we’re just focused on the problem of child sex trafficking,” says FBI section chief Jose Perez, who oversees the agency’s violent crime investigations. “What we do is we sit down with our local partners and our task forces and identify certain areas where we know sex trafficking is prevalent, and we’ll dedicate resources and efforts.” In all, nearly 200 federal, state and local agencies partnered with the agency on this initiative. The active total of victims located this year as part of Cross Country is 391.