A federal judge has rejected a U.S. Department of Justice attempt to obtain the names and personal contact information of individuals who worked during the 2020 election in Georgia's Fulton County. The ruling came Tuesday after the Justice Department sought the information via a grand jury subpoena.
Fulton County officials had asked a judge to quash the subpoena, arguing it was overly broad and intended to harass perceived political opponents. U.S. District Judge William Ray agreed, stating in his ruling that the subpoena was "unreasonable and must be quashed" due to the "low need for the subpoenaed information and the highly burdensome nature of the disclosure."
Ray wrote that while grand juries assist federal prosecutors in investigations, this does not grant the Department of Justice the right to use them for any purpose. He also noted that even if the information could help identify individuals who supported theories of an unfair election, it could not be used to bring charges because the statute of limitations for any potential crimes related to the 2020 election has expired.
The subpoena was issued after the FBI seized hundreds of boxes of ballots and other election documents from the Fulton County election hub in January. The Justice Department contended that the subpoena was a standard investigative step to identify individuals with relevant knowledge. However, county lawyers argued that the request would deter future election workers and that the statute of limitations had already passed.
During a previous hearing, Judge Ray had expressed concern about the breadth of the request, stating that while not every broad request is disallowed, there is a point at which such requests go too far. The Justice Department had argued that the statute of limitations was not relevant at the investigative stage, as the purpose of the investigation is to determine what charges, if any, can be brought.