FBI’s decisions not politically-motivated but still harmful: DOJ watchdog

FBI Director James Comey makes a statement regarding Hillary Clinton's emails at FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C., July 5, 2016. The Justice Department's internal watchdog has concluded that the FBI's most controversial decisions during the 2016 presidential election were not politically-motivated, but the FBI's reputation has nonetheless been gored by the actions of some of its agents -- findings that come after a nearly two-year assault on the FBI by Donald Trump and other Republicans alleging FBI officials allowed political considerations to influence investigations.

In reversal, Trump signs order stopping family separation

Bowing to pressure from anxious allies, President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday ending the process of separating children from families after they are detained crossing the U.S. border illegally. It was a dramatic turnaround for Trump, who has been insisting, wrongly, that his administration had no choice but to separate families apprehended at the border because of federal law and a court decision.

Apple to undercut popular law-enforcement tool for cracking iPhones

The company told Reuters it was aiming to protect all customers, especially in countries where phones are readily obtained by police or by criminals with extensive resources, and to head off further spread of the attack technique. The privacy standard-bearer of the tech industry said it will change default settings in the iPhone operating system to cut off communication through the USB port when the phone has not been unlocked in the past hour.

INLAND: Child-porn probe nets 500,000 images, 9 arrests

Nine Inland Southern California men were arrested this week by federal agents in a crackdown on what they called one of the largest child-pornography distribution operations ever. Agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations unit took eight of the men into custody in cities throughout the region.

Lawsuit says DOJ not providing documents to ex-FBI official

The Justice Department has repeatedly refused to provide former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe with documents related to his firing, according to a lawsuit filed on his behalf. The complaint filed Tuesday says the Justice Department has publicly defended the firing yet failed to identify for McCabe the policies and procedures it followed before dismissing him.

Lawsuit: Justice Dept. failed to give McCabe info on firing

The Justice Department has repeatedly refused to provide former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe with documents related to his firing, according to a lawsuit filed on his behalf Tuesday. The complaint says the Justice Department has publicly defended the firing yet failed to identify for McCabe the policies and procedures it followed before dismissing him.

APNewsBreak: US launches bid to find citizenship cheaters

In this Dec. 13, 2017 file photo, L. Francis Cissna, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, sits during an interview in Los Angeles. The U.S. government agency that oversees immigrants' applications to become citizens is starting an office tasked with stripping naturalized Americans of their citizenship if they cheated to get it.

$28M verdict upheld in Nebraska wrongful conviction case

A federal appeals court on Monday upheld a $28.1 million judgment awarded to six people who were wrongfully convicted of murder in one of the nation's largest false-confession cases, a ruling that could force a Nebraska county closer to bankruptcy. A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to overturn the jury's 2016 verdict against Gage County and two former law enforcement officials.

Criminal probe of Pruitt sought

House Democrats on Friday formally requested that the Justice Department investigate Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt for potential criminal conduct. In a letter to FBI Director Chris Wray and Justice criminal division chief John Cronan, six Democratic lawmakers with oversight of Pruitt's agency allege that he repeatedly violated federal anti-corruption laws by seeking to leverage his government position for personal gain.

House Democrats seek criminal corruption probe of EPA’s Pruitt

House Democrats on Friday formally requested that the Justice Department investigate Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt for potential criminal conduct. In a letter to FBI Director Chris Wray and Justice criminal division chief John Cronan, six Democratic lawmakers with oversight of Pruitt's agency allege he repeatedly violated federal anti-corruption laws by seeking to leverage his government position for personal gain.

Deep Thoughts: Can a President Actually Pardon Himself?

I'm admittedly a bit mystified that this question is being openly discussed by the president's team, but here we are. The "issue" was thrust into the open over the weekend, when presidential lawyer Rudy Giuliani took the media's bait and speculated in real time -- you could almost see the thought bubble over his head -- over the question on live television.