{"id":165504,"date":"2026-10-22T10:55:03","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T18:55:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/10\/22\/dojs-watchdog-wont-investigate-jeanine-pirros-reflecting-pool-prosecution\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T10:55:03","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T18:55:03","slug":"dojs-watchdog-wont-investigate-jeanine-pirros-reflecting-pool-prosecution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/10\/22\/dojs-watchdog-wont-investigate-jeanine-pirros-reflecting-pool-prosecution\/","title":{"rendered":"DOJ\u2019s Watchdog Won\u2019t Investigate Jeanine Pirro\u2019s Reflecting Pool Prosecution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Two weeks ago, David Hearn\u2019s lawyers asked the inspectors general at the Justice and Interior Departments to figure out how a 67-year-old Olympian ended up indicted for touching a piece of the Reflecting Pool that was already falling off<\/a>. And the result of that quixotic ask is in, and, yeah it\u2019s not happening. <\/p>\n

In an October 8 letter to Hearn\u2019s attorneys, DOJ Inspector General Don Berthiaume said limits in the law<\/a> required him to send the case to the Office of Professional Responsibility. Berthiaume is the IG who was confirmed 51-47 after declining to call January 6 an attack on the Capitol. On Wednesday, Hearn\u2019s lawyers wrote back<\/a> asking his office to reconsider, pointing to evidence of what they describe as potential crimes committed both by DOJ personnel alone and by DOJ and Interior employees together. That legal team includes Michael Bromwich, who ran the DOJ OIG during the Clinton administration.<\/p>\n

Berthiaume isn\u2019t inventing the jurisdictional line. Allegations against DOJ lawyers acting as lawyers (grand jury abuse, discovery abuse, and the like) have long gone to OPR rather than the inspector general. Bromwich knows the arrangement better than almost anyone. He was recruited as IG in 1993 on the understanding that the OIG and OPR would be merged, a plan that died when members of the Senate Judiciary Committee made clear they\u2019d hold up his confirmation over it. In 2001 testimony before that same committee<\/a>, he recalled that an earlier order had handed OPR jurisdiction over attorneys \u201ceven though it lacked the manpower to do a credible job in that regard.\u201d Twenty-five years later, OPR is down to 16 people.<\/p>\n

But the letter isn\u2019t only about lawyers. Federal agents accused of misconduct during investigations do fall under the inspector general\u2019s jurisdiction, and the DOJ OIG has run a number of high-profile investigations into department lawyers\u2019 conduct<\/a> in the past anyway. And Hearn\u2019s team isn\u2019t alleging sloppy lawyering. They say the handling of the case involved \u201cnumerous potential crimes, including witness tampering, subornation of perjury, obstruction of justice, and criminal civil rights violations.\u201d<\/a> That would include the grand jury witness who couldn\u2019t put a number on Hearn\u2019s damage, got excused, then came back 21 minutes later certain it was at least $1,000<\/a>, which\u2026 happens to be the felony line.<\/a><\/p>\n

So what does all that mean for the investigation? Since Trump returned to office, OPR has shrunk from 29 employees to 16<\/a>. In fiscal year 2025 it opened seven new investigations, its lowest total in two decades, while receiving 1,666 complaints, the most since 2005. OPR also reports up to the deputy attorney general and the attorney general<\/a>, and unlike the IG it has no obligation to publicize its work or report its findings to Congress. The OIG has punted before, too: Reuters found it<\/a> had referred a DOJ whistleblower\u2019s allegations against senior Trump officials to OPR on the theory that OPR was better positioned to investigate.<\/p>\n

Hearn\u2019s lawyers aren\u2019t pretending this is anything but a sham. They wrote that OPR is \u201cno longer a fully functioning entity capable of conducting rigorous oversight,\u201d<\/a> and that the IG\u2019s declination means an investigation simply won\u2019t happen. Norm Eisen, another member of the team, told The Hill<\/a> \u201cthere is no excuse for OIG [Office of Inspector General] not to look into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The one watchdog that does seem willing to take a look works for the Interior Department. According to the new letter, Interior\u2019s inspector general is investigating<\/a> Hearn\u2019s allegations about Interior personnel. Of course, Interior is also the department that commissioned the liner that peeled off in the first place. So the agency responsible for the pool is the one asking questions, while the agency responsible for the prosecution has decided it\u2019s someone else\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n

Hearn\u2019s lawyers called their original request \u201ca further test of the IG system under this Administration,\u201d and the Justice Department\u2019s watchdog handled it the way plenty of people handle a test they\u2019d rather not take, by insisting he was never enrolled in the class in the first place.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Lawyers Want A Watchdog To Look At Jeanine Pirro\u2019s Reflecting Pool Case. Good Luck Finding One.<\/a>
Judge Demands Answers From DOJ For Refusing To Dismiss Reflecting Pool Case With Prejudice<\/a>
Jeanine Pirro Joins The Growing List Of Trump Prosecutors With A Grievance File<\/a>
How Much Misconduct Is Jeanine Pirro Willing To Do To Save Her Job?<\/a>
Donald Trump Likely To Fire Jeanine Pirro For Having One Foot In Reality<\/a>
Litigants Ask To Check Reflecting Pool For \u2018Sabotage\u2019<\/a>
I Forgot To Clean My Swimming Pool And, Frankly, I Too Suspect ANTIFA Vandals<\/a>
Jeanine Pirro Is The Biggest Loser<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post DOJ\u2019s Watchdog Won\u2019t Investigate Jeanine Pirro\u2019s Reflecting Pool Prosecution<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t(Photo by Tasos Katopodis\/Getty Images)\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Two weeks ago, David Hearn\u2019s lawyers asked the inspectors general at the Justice and Interior Departments to figure out how a 67-year-old Olympian ended up indicted for touching a piece of the Reflecting Pool that was already falling off<\/a>. And the result of that quixotic ask is in, and, yeah it\u2019s not happening. <\/p>\n

In an October 8 letter to Hearn\u2019s attorneys, DOJ Inspector General Don Berthiaume said limits in the law<\/a> required him to send the case to the Office of Professional Responsibility. Berthiaume is the IG who was confirmed 51-47 after declining to call January 6 an attack on the Capitol. On Wednesday, Hearn\u2019s lawyers wrote back<\/a> asking his office to reconsider, pointing to evidence of what they describe as potential crimes committed both by DOJ personnel alone and by DOJ and Interior employees together. That legal team includes Michael Bromwich, who ran the DOJ OIG during the Clinton administration.<\/p>\n

Berthiaume isn\u2019t inventing the jurisdictional line. Allegations against DOJ lawyers acting as lawyers (grand jury abuse, discovery abuse, and the like) have long gone to OPR rather than the inspector general. Bromwich knows the arrangement better than almost anyone. He was recruited as IG in 1993 on the understanding that the OIG and OPR would be merged, a plan that died when members of the Senate Judiciary Committee made clear they\u2019d hold up his confirmation over it. In 2001 testimony before that same committee<\/a>, he recalled that an earlier order had handed OPR jurisdiction over attorneys \u201ceven though it lacked the manpower to do a credible job in that regard.\u201d Twenty-five years later, OPR is down to 16 people.<\/p>\n

But the letter isn\u2019t only about lawyers. Federal agents accused of misconduct during investigations do fall under the inspector general\u2019s jurisdiction, and the DOJ OIG has run a number of high-profile investigations into department lawyers\u2019 conduct<\/a> in the past anyway. And Hearn\u2019s team isn\u2019t alleging sloppy lawyering. They say the handling of the case involved \u201cnumerous potential crimes, including witness tampering, subornation of perjury, obstruction of justice, and criminal civil rights violations.\u201d<\/a> That would include the grand jury witness who couldn\u2019t put a number on Hearn\u2019s damage, got excused, then came back 21 minutes later certain it was at least $1,000<\/a>, which\u2026 happens to be the felony line.<\/p>\n

So what does all that mean for the investigation? Since Trump returned to office, OPR has shrunk from 29 employees to 16<\/a>. In fiscal year 2025 it opened seven new investigations, its lowest total in two decades, while receiving 1,666 complaints, the most since 2005. OPR also reports up to the deputy attorney general and the attorney general<\/a>, and unlike the IG it has no obligation to publicize its work or report its findings to Congress. The OIG has punted before, too: Reuters found it<\/a> had referred a DOJ whistleblower\u2019s allegations against senior Trump officials to OPR on the theory that OPR was better positioned to investigate.<\/p>\n

Hearn\u2019s lawyers aren\u2019t pretending this is anything but a sham. They wrote that OPR is \u201cno longer a fully functioning entity capable of conducting rigorous oversight,\u201d<\/a> and that the IG\u2019s declination means an investigation simply won\u2019t happen. Norm Eisen, another member of the team, told The Hill<\/a> \u201cthere is no excuse for OIG [Office of Inspector General] not to look into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The one watchdog that does seem willing to take a look works for the Interior Department. According to the new letter, Interior\u2019s inspector general is investigating<\/a> Hearn\u2019s allegations about Interior personnel. Of course, Interior is also the department that commissioned the liner that peeled off in the first place. So the agency responsible for the pool is the one asking questions, while the agency responsible for the prosecution has decided it\u2019s someone else\u2019s problem.<\/p>\n

Hearn\u2019s lawyers called their original request \u201ca further test of the IG system under this Administration,\u201d and the Justice Department\u2019s watchdog handled it the way plenty of people handle a test they\u2019d rather not take, by insisting he was never enrolled in the class in the first place.<\/p>\n

Earlier:<\/strong> Lawyers Want A Watchdog To Look At Jeanine Pirro\u2019s Reflecting Pool Case. Good Luck Finding One.<\/a>
Judge Demands Answers From DOJ For Refusing To Dismiss Reflecting Pool Case With Prejudice<\/a>
Jeanine Pirro Joins The Growing List Of Trump Prosecutors With A Grievance File<\/a>
How Much Misconduct Is Jeanine Pirro Willing To Do To Save Her Job?<\/a>
Donald Trump Likely To Fire Jeanine Pirro For Having One Foot In Reality<\/a>
Litigants Ask To Check Reflecting Pool For \u2018Sabotage\u2019<\/a>
I Forgot To Clean My Swimming Pool And, Frankly, I Too Suspect ANTIFA Vandals<\/a>
Jeanine Pirro Is The Biggest Loser<\/a><\/p>\n

\n

\"\"Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of\u00a0The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of\u00a0Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email\u00a0her<\/a>\u00a0with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Bluesky\u00a0@Kathryn1<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Two weeks ago, David Hearn\u2019s lawyers asked the inspectors general at the Justice and Interior Departments to figure out how a 67-year-old Olympian ended up indicted for touching a piece of the Reflecting Pool that was already falling off. And the result of that quixotic ask is in, and, yeah it\u2019s not happening. In an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":165491,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-165504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165504","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165504"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165504\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/165491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165504"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165504"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165504"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}