Acting US Attorney Ed Martin Demotes Jan. 6 Case Supervisors (1)

Washington’s top federal prosecutor Ed Martin has demoted multiple senior supervisors involved in Capitol riot cases to work in significantly reduced capacities.

The supervisors oversaw the office’s work on federal crimes, and public corruption and civil rights, among other offices, according to multiple people familiar with the moves. Now they been told to immediately report to misdemeanors or an office called the early case assessment section, said the individuals, who all spoke on condition of anonymity to share private conversations.

“As you know, each US Attorney must assess the needs of his office to achieve the goals set forth by the President and Attorney General. To that end, I must assign attorneys where I assess there is need and where I believe each AUSA can contribute,” Martin wrote in a demotion email viewed by Bloomberg Law.

Martin, a former advocate for Jan. 6 Capitol rioters, has overseen the dismissal of hundreds of criminal cases against those who participated in the 2021 attack, after President Donald Trump issued sweeping pardons his first day in office. He’s been serving in an interim capacity, but Trump recently formally nominated him to lead one of the most critical Justice Department districts.

Martin has launched an investigation into his own office’s use of a criminal obstruction statute in Jan. 6 cases. He told employees last month that anyone who doesn’t cooperate with his inquiry will be viewed as “insubordinate.”

He also promised to crack down on those who threaten federal judges and workers for the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency.

Martin was also directed last month to fire more than a dozen prosecutors who worked on Jan. 6 cases and been recently converted from temporary to permanent status.

It’s common for new US attorneys to remove some of the unit chiefs they inherited and promote people of their choosing, but downgrading the veteran leaders to handle misdemeanor matters instead of the felonies they’ve long handled is considered a significant departure.