Justice Department pledges to no longer seize journalist records as part of leak investigations

The Justice Department on Saturday announced that it would no longer seek seizure of journalists’ records and communications while investigating classified leaks, an announcement that comes after several revelations regarding record seizures under the Trump administration.

Disclosures over the last several weeks revealed that the Trump administration on several occasions had obtained email and/or phone call logs of reporters at several major news organizations. 

On Saturday, DOJ spokesman Anthony Coley said the department moving forward "will not seek compulsory legal process in leak investigations to obtain source information from members of the news media doing their jobs."

President Joe Biden has criticized the record seizures that happened under the Trump Justice Department, calling them "simply, simply wrong."

The Justice Department "strongly values a free press, protecting First Amendment values, and is committed to taking all appropriate steps to ensure the independence of journalists," Coley said on Saturday.