司法部长梅里克·加兰轻拍杰克·史密斯长期担任联邦检察官和司法部公共诚信部门前负责人的特别顾问，负责监督DOJ对前总统唐纳德·特朗普(Donald Trump)推翻2020年选举结果的调查，以及他在离任后对机密材料的处理。
“史密斯先生是以公平和紧迫的方式完成这些礼仪的正确选择，”加兰在2022年11月的新闻发布会上说。
特朗普是8月1日被起诉被指控通过涉嫌招募一系列针对几个州的所谓“假选举人”来实施“犯罪计划”，以推翻2020年的选举结果;利用司法部进行“虚假选举犯罪调查”;试图争取副总统“改变选举结果”;并且在1月6日的暴乱发生后加倍谎称选举被盗——根据史密斯的检察官的说法，这一切都是为了颠覆民主和继续掌权。
特朗普告诉美国广播公司新闻(ABC News)，这些指控是“堆积如山的”，并表示“这是对选举的干涉”，意在阻止他赢回总统职位。
6月，特朗普不服罪检察官说，他一再拒绝归还数百份包含从美国核机密到国家国防能力等机密信息的文件。他否认了所有指控，并谴责调查是政治迫害。
作为特别顾问，史密斯将“行使独立的检察判断，决定是否应该提出指控，”加兰去年宣布史密斯的任命时说。
史密斯在11月通过司法部发布的一份声明中表示，他将“行使独立判断”，并“迅速彻底地工作，无论事实和法律规定的结果如何。”
2010年8月24日，时任美国司法部公共诚信部门负责人的杰克·史密斯在华盛顿特区的司法部留影。
查尔斯·达拉帕克/美联社，档案
“在我的监督下，调查的步伐不会停顿或减弱，”史密斯说。
前同事认为史密斯是一名积极进取的检察官，不会回避做出艰难的起诉判断，他的背景和气质使他成为这一高调角色的有力选择。
“在调查复杂的联邦刑事指控方面，杰克·史密斯是黄金标准，”DOJ公共诚信部门的前同事爱德华·j·罗亚告诉美国广播公司新闻。
“他给工作带来了巨大的判断力、经验和能量，并激励那些为他工作的人尽最大努力。现在就职于爱泼斯坦·贝克·格林律师事务所的罗亚说:“我相信他会毫不畏惧、不偏不倚地承担起这个角色。
与史密斯共事十多年的前联邦检察官格雷格·安德烈斯(Greg Andres)称赞史密斯“鉴于他的经验和判断，他是独一无二的合格人选。”
“我很难想到更好的选择——他独立、有思想、深思熟虑。他会做正确的事情，他有丰富的经验，”安德烈斯说，他现在在戴维斯波尔克律师事务所工作。“他会把每一块石头都翻过来，但他会及时完成。”
詹姆斯·麦戈文，纽约东区史密斯的前联邦检察官，现在在霍根·洛弗尔斯私人执业，称史密斯为“完美的检察官和公仆”。
“我不知道他的政治信仰是什么，因为他完全不关心政治，”麦戈文说。"他致力于做正确的事。"
自2018年以来，史密斯最近一次担任荷兰海牙国际刑事法院(ICC)的首席检察官，他的任务是调查和裁决科索沃的战争罪行。
在海牙工作之前，Smith曾在司法部担任多个职务，包括在纽约东区担任助理联邦检察官，以及在田纳西州中区担任第一助理联邦检察官。
2010年，史密斯执掌国务院公共诚信部门，负责监管经常针对当选官员的高调案件。
他的部门在对前参议员和民主党总统候选人约翰·爱德华兹的失败起诉中发挥了作用，他被指控违反竞选财务，旨在隐瞒婚外情。当Edwards在2011年被起诉时，Smith是首席执行官，但在一次审判导致陪审团陷入僵局后，DOJ放弃了此案。
前同事说，史密斯还展示了在证据不足以证明犯罪时放弃案件的能力，这表明他决定结束对前众议员汤姆·迪莱的长达几年的案件。
“如果没有案子，就不会有，”布莱恩·基德说，他是司法部的前同事，现在是Morrison Foerster的合伙人。“他对为了起诉而起诉某人不感兴趣。如果发展到下一个阶段，那是因为事实摆在那里，他认为有人犯罪。”
2014年，众议院共和党人采访了史密斯，作为他们调查奥巴马时代国税局是否可能针对保守派采取执法行动的一部分。史密斯还监督了DOJ对至少一名记者的传唤，以获取关于其来源的证词和文件——这是一种有争议的做法，司法部长加兰最近禁止了这种做法。
在纽约东区任职期间，史密斯起诉了一个名叫罗内尔·威尔逊的人，他谋杀了两名纽约警察局的侦探。威尔逊在2006年成为自1988年联邦死刑恢复以来第一个被判死刑的人。
史密斯是继前联邦调查局局长罗伯特·穆勒调查特朗普竞选团队后，第二位调查特朗普的特别顾问与俄罗斯政府的关系2016年总统竞选期间。
穆勒团队的前成员安德烈斯表示，史密斯不仅是管理特朗普调查的重要人物，也是调查的象征性领导人。
“最重要的是谁在进行调查——想想罗伯特·穆勒的背景吧，”Andres说。“故事发生在杰克·史密斯。”
Who is Jack Smith, the special counsel overseeing the DOJ's Trump probes?
Attorney General Merrick Garlandtapped Jack Smith, a longtime federal prosecutor and former head of the Justice Department's public integrity section, as special counsel to oversee the DOJ's investigation into former President Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results, as well as his handling of classified materials after leaving office.
"Mr. Smith is the right choice to complete these manners in an evenhanded and urgent manner," Garland said at a press conference in November 2022.
Trump wasindicted on Aug. 1on charges of undertaking a "criminal scheme" to overturn the results of the 2020 election by allegedly enlisting a slate of so-called "fake electors" targeting several states; using the Justice Department to conduct "sham election crime investigations"; trying to enlist the vice president to "alter the election results"; and doubling down on false claims of a stolen election as the Jan. 6 riot ensued -- all in an effort to subvert democracy and stay in power, according to Smith's prosecutors.
Trump told ABC News the charges were a "pile-on" and said "it's election interference" meant to keep him from winning back the presidency.
In June, Trumppleaded not guiltyto 37 criminal counts related to his handling of classified materials, after prosecutors said he repeatedly refused to return hundreds of documents containing classified information ranging from U.S. nuclear secrets to the nation's defense capabilities. He has denied all charges and denounced the probe as a political witch hunt.
As special counsel, Smith will "exercise independent prosecutorial judgment to decide whether charges should be brought," Garland said while announcing Smith's appointment last year.
Smith said in a statement released in November through the Justice Department that he would "exercise independent judgment" and work "expeditiously and thoroughly to whatever outcome the facts and the law dictate."
"The pace of the investigations will not pause or flag under my watch," Smith said.
Former colleagues have characterized Smith as an aggressive prosecutor who would not shy away from taking on difficult prosecutorial judgments, with the background and temperament that make him a strong selection for the high-profile role.
"When it comes to investigating allegations of sophisticated federal criminal matters, Jack Smith is the gold standard," Edward J. Loya Jr., a former colleague in the public integrity section at the DOJ, told ABC News.
"He brings a tremendous amount of judgment, experience, and energy to the job and inspires those who work for him to do their best work. I am confident he will take on this role without fear or favor," said Loya, who is now at the law firm Epstein Becker Green.
Greg Andres, a former federal prosecutor who worked with Smith for more than a decade, lauded Smith as "uniquely qualified given his experience and his judgment."
"It's hard for me to think of a better choice -- he's independent, thoughtful, deliberate. He's going to do what's right and he has a tremendous amount of experience," said Andres, who is now at the law firm Davis Polk. "He'll turn over every stone, but he'll do it in a timely manner."
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James McGovern, a former federal prosecutor with Smith in the Eastern District of New York, and now in private practice at Hogan Lovells, called Smith "the consummate prosecutor and public servant."
"I have no idea what his political beliefs are because he's completely apolitical," McGovern said. "He's committed to doing what is right."
Smith has most recently served since 2018 as chief prosecutor in the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague, Netherlands, where he was tasked with investigating and adjudicating war crimes in Kosovo.
Prior to his time in the Hague, Smith served in multiple roles with the Justice Department, including as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of New York and as first assistant U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.
In 2010, Smith took the helm of the department's public integrity unit, where he oversaw high-profile cases that often targeted elected officials.
His section played a role in the failed prosecution of former senator and Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards for alleged campaign finance violations aimed at hiding an extramarital affair. Smith was chief when Edwards was indicted in 2011, but the DOJ dropped the case after a trial led to a deadlocked jury.
Smith has also demonstrated the capacity to drop cases when the evidence does not bear out a crime, former colleagues said, pointing to his decision to close a years-long case against former Rep. Tom Delay, R-Texas.
"If there is not a case, there will not be a case," said Brian Kidd, a former colleague at the Justice Department who is now a partner at Morrison Foerster. "He is not interested in prosecuting somebody for the point of prosecuting. If it moves to that next level, it's because the facts are there and he believes a crime was committed."
In 2014, House Republicans interviewed Smith as part of their investigation into whether the Obama-era IRS may have targeted conservatives for enforcement actions. Smith also oversaw the DOJ's subpoenaing of at least one reporter for testimony and documents about their sources -- a controversial practice that Attorney General Garland recently prohibited.
During his time in the Eastern District in New York, Smith prosecuted a man named Ronell Wilson for murdering two New York Police Department detectives. Wilson in 2006 became the first person sentenced to death since the reinstatement of the federal death penalty in 1988.
Smith is the second special counsel to investigate Trump, after former FBI Director Robert Mueller probed the Trump campaign'sties to the Russian governmentduring the 2016 presidential campaign.
Andres, a former member of Mueller's team, said Smith will be an important figure not only in managing the investigation of Trump, but also symbolically as a figurehead for the probe.
"The most important thing is who is running the investigation -- think about it in the context of Robert Mueller," Andres said. "The story is Jack Smith."
