On Friday, the Justice Department settled a long-standing privacy suit with Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, two former FBI officials at the center of controversy in 2018 due to their involvement in the Mueller investigation. While Strzok’s wrongful termination claims are still pending, the settlement concludes a contentious episode from the Trump administration, one that would have likely drawn significant scrutiny under any other presidency.
Strzok and Page, involved in the investigations of Hillary Clinton’s email server and Donald Trump’s Russia ties, were removed from Special Counsel Mueller’s team in July 2017 after their private text messages critical of Trump were leaked. The Justice Department, in violation of their rights under the Privacy Act, released these texts to reporters to shield Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein from Republican ire. Former DOJ spokesperson Sarah Isgur curated and disseminated the texts, ensuring the media would focus on Strzok and Page’s personal indiscretions, thus diverting attention from Rosenstein’s anticipated testimony.
During his presidency, Trump continuously targeted Strzok and Page, culminating in Strzok’s firing, allegedly influenced by Trump contrary to DOJ policy. Both Strzok and Page filed lawsuits in 2019 alleging privacy violations, with Strzok additionally claiming wrongful termination. Settlement talks recently accelerated under the guidance of Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who has handled significant disputes in these cases since early 2020.
According to stipulations published by Politico, the DOJ agreed to pay $1.2 million to Strzok and $800,000 to Page for their Privacy Act claims. Strzok’s ongoing claim now solely addresses his wrongful termination. The protracted litigation also involved efforts to prevent Trump from testifying under oath, a battle ultimately lost when Trump was deposed in October 2023.
During a House Judiciary Committee hearing on June 3, Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized the Privacy Act’s impartiality, despite Republican attempts to criticize the settlement. Garland noted, “The Privacy Act doesn’t distinguish between people we like and people we don’t like,” affirming that the law applies uniformly to protect personal information.
For further details, visit the original article on Above the Law.