The U.S. Department of Justice has reportedly begun an inquiry into former White House staffer Cassidy Hutchinson over statements she delivered during congressional hearings tied to the events of January 6, 2021.
According to The New York Times, the department assigned its civil rights division to oversee the matter. The effort is being led by division chief Harmeet Dhillon.
Hutchinson previously worked under Mark Meadows while serving in the Trump White House.
The reported investigation follows a referral submitted by a congressional ally of Donald Trump. The referral alleged that Hutchinson gave false testimony to the House panel that examined the Capitol events.
“The investigation into Ms. Hutchinson began some weeks ago after the Justice Department received a referral from a Trump ally in Congress who accused Ms. Hutchinson of lying to the special House committee that investigated the events of Jan. 6,” the Times reported.
The committee referenced in the report was created during the speakership of Nancy Pelosi.
During televised testimony in June 2022, Hutchinson described what she said were conversations and accounts involving Trump’s actions on January 6.
The Times stated, “During explosive televised testimony in June 2022, Ms. Hutchinson, now 29, said that Mr. Trump had encouraged the crowd that gathered to hear him speak near the White House on Jan. 6 to march to the Capitol even though he knew it was armed and could turn violent.”
She also relayed claims about an alleged incident inside a presidential vehicle involving Trump and a Secret Service agent.
“She also claimed that she had heard that Mr. Trump lunged at one of his Secret Service agents in a presidential limo when he was told he could not join his supporters on Capitol Hill. Other testimony later contradicted that assertion,” the Times reported.
According to CNBC, Trump disputed the account publicly at the time, issuing a statement on social media.
“Her fake story that I tried to grab the steering wheel of the White House Limousine in order to steer it to the Capitol Building is ‘sick’ and fraudulent, very much like the Unselect Committee itself — Wouldn’t have even been possible to do such a ridiculous thing,” Trump wrote.
Testimony from a Secret Service driver later challenged Hutchinson’s description of the incident.
The driver told investigators that he “did not see him reach [redacted]. [President Trump] never grabbed the steering wheel. I didn’t see him, you know, lunge to try to get into the front seat at all.”
Trump also rejected additional claims attributed to Hutchinson regarding conduct inside the White House.
“Her story of me throwing food is also false … and why would SHE have to clean it up, I hardly knew who she was,” he stated in another post.
During her appearances before the committee, Hutchinson answered questions from lawmakers, including Liz Cheney, who served in a leadership role on the panel.
In one exchange, Hutchinson described incidents involving Meadows’ behavior.
“There were several times throughout my tenure with the chief of staff where I was aware of either him throwing dishes or flipping the tablecloth to let all the contents of the table go onto the floor,” she testified.
The West Journal reported in 2024 that Barry Loudermilk, who chaired a House oversight subcommittee, released communications between Cheney and Hutchinson from 2022.
The subcommittee indicated that the two had been in contact directly and through Alyssa Farah Griffin while Hutchinson was still represented by her attorney, Stefan Passantino.
Hutchinson participated in six recorded interviews with the committee, according to the subcommittee, with Passantino present during the first three.
After that point, Hutchinson began communicating with Cheney independently using an encrypted messaging platform, according to the findings.
The subcommittee reported that Hutchinson later dismissed her attorney and retained new legal representation that had been recommended by Cheney. The new attorneys agreed to represent her without charge.
Following the change in counsel, Hutchinson appeared for three additional rounds of testimony.
Loudermilk later alleged that her statements evolved after the transition, pointing to what he described as reliance on indirect information.
“Cheney’s influence on Hutchinson is apparent from that point forward by her dramatic change in testimony and eventual claims against President Trump using second- and third-hand accounts,” Loudermilk said.
A report issued by the subcommittee in December 2024 disputed several elements of Hutchinson’s testimony.
According to the report, there was no evidence that Trump physically confronted Secret Service personnel or had prior knowledge of impending violence at the Capitol that morning.
The subcommittee also reviewed a handwritten note that had been introduced during the hearings.
It concluded that Hutchinson’s claim of authorship was not supported, citing analysis from a handwriting expert indicating the document was written by someone else.
The report stated that the note had been presented to support claims regarding Trump’s response during the unfolding events.
The Justice Department has not publicly released additional details regarding the reported investigation or its potential timeline.
