The Justice Department is fighting to keep sealed the warrant used at Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington home, arguing that disclosure now would imperil an ongoing criminal investigation.
In a heavily redacted 47-page filing submitted Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro asked a federal judge to reject requests from news organizations and the conservative group Judicial Watch to unseal the search warrant records tied to the Minnesota Democrat’s residence.
Newsmax reported that prosecutors told the court that opening those records at this stage “imperils the investigation,” and they framed the matter as an active criminal case in which no charging decision has been made or announced.
Agents with Homeland Security Investigations, an arm of the Department of Homeland Security, executed the warrant on Oct. 12 at Omar’s Washington home. That search came 22 days before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, as Omar seeks a fifth House term.
Pirro’s office asked Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to deny the unsealing applications without prejudice. Boasberg, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, set a schedule last week requiring the news outlets to respond to the government by Friday.
The government told the court it does not necessarily oppose unsealing the records later, with redactions, once a charging decision has been made and announced. If the judge orders release now, prosecutors also asked for a delay long enough to seek an emergency order blocking it.
In the filing, the Justice Department put its core objection in plain terms:
"imperils the investigation."
News organizations including The New York Times, The Associated Press, and CNN have pressed for the records. They argue that the public interest in an investigation of a sitting member of Congress outweighs any need for secrecy. Judicial Watch joined those efforts as a requester.
Omar has not been charged. She has denied wrongdoing and cast the search as improper targeting.
"an attempt to target political enemies and weaponize federal law enforcement."
She has said she came to the United States as a refugee from Somalia and became a citizen in 2000 through her father’s naturalization.
The New York Times, citing a person familiar with the document, reported that the warrant lists potential crimes including false statements and fraud in immigration documents, as well as conspiracy. That description of the warrant’s contents has not been confirmed through a full public primary document in the available court filing.
The October search fell inside the window when Justice Department practice generally discourages overt investigative steps against candidates. ABC News has reported that the department’s usual approach is to avoid such steps within 60 days of an election. The warrant was executed 22 days before the Nov. 3 midterms.
President Donald Trump, a longtime critic of the Minnesota Democrat, told reporters Tuesday that Omar could face deportation. He also called her a “sick and very dishonest person,” according to the Times account of his remarks.
Omar remains a sitting member of Congress and a candidate for another term while the investigation continues and the unsealing fight moves forward in Boasberg’s court. No charging decision has been announced.
Taxpayers and voters have a clear stake when federal agents search a member of Congress’s home and prosecutors later tell a judge that the public cannot yet see the warrant. Secrecy has a place in live investigations. It should not become a permanent shield from accountability when the target holds public office and is asking for another term.
