Top Justice Department vote crimes prosecutor steps down in protest of Barr's directive

William Barr
(Image credit: Samuel Corum/Getty Images)

Richard Pilger, head of the Justice Department's Elections Crimes Branch, stepped down late Monday, telling colleagues in an email that he was "regretfully" resigning as after "having familiarized myself with the new policy" handed down by Attorney General William Barr "and its ramifications." He said Barr's carefully worded memo to U.S. attorneys Monday is "abrogating the 40-year-old non-interference policy for ballot fraud investigations in the period prior to elections becoming certified and uncontested."

"Barr had first broached a similar idea some weeks ago," but "political leadership in the Justice Department's Criminal Division, of which the Election Crimes Branch is a part, pushed back," The Washington Post reports. "Those officials were blindsided when Barr's memo was released on Monday." Pilger is stepping down as director of that unit but will stay on as a line prosecutor, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and the Post report.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.