A Washington grand jury on Tuesday declined to indict former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity. The decision represents the latest setback in the Justice Department's efforts to charge perceived adversaries of President Donald Trump.
Details of the prosecutors' allegations against Hutchinson were not immediately clear. Republican lawmakers had previously accused her of lying under oath during her 2022 testimony before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection.
As a special assistant to then-Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, Hutchinson provided testimony describing an angry, defiant president who attempted to let armed protesters bypass security screenings and who grabbed at the steering wheel of the presidential SUV when the Secret Service refused to take him to the Capitol. She also testified that Trump declined to intervene as the crowd chanted "Hang Mike Pence." Trump denied her account on Truth Social, calling her a "total phony" and "bad news."
Hutchinson acknowledged she did not witness the SUV altercation firsthand but was relaying what she heard from a White House security official. A 2024 transcript from the presidential limo driver contradicted her description of the steering wheel incident, stating he did not see Trump lunge or grab the wheel, though the driver corroborated other aspects of her account, including Trump's attempt to join the mob at the Capitol.
During her testimony, Hutchinson alleged that members of Trump's inner circle offered job opportunities and financial assistance while she cooperated with the committee, and that her own lawyer told her "the less you remember, the better." She told the committee, "It feels ridiculous, because in my heart I knew where my loyalties lied, and my loyalties lied with the truth. And I never wanted to diverge from that."
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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