Obstruction of Justice Scandals

Gave access to sealed evidence during the infamous Murdaugh murder trial, lied about doing so under oath and used her position to promote a book about it which almost led to a mistrial.

Fraudulently inflated his assets by tens of millions of dollars and grossly underreported his liabilities by millions more to financial institutions on multiple loan applications which led to him being approved for loans totaling $172 million that otherwise wouldn't have been approved and then lied to authorities when they confronted him

Filed a false police report that accused his girlfriend of stealing his car when she had legal possession of it the entire time

Lied about living in the district he was later elected to represent on candidacy forms that he swore under oath under were accurate

Consumed crystal meth at a drug house he drove to in his marked police vehicle while dressed in uniform and then lied to federal investigators when they questioned him

Attempted to extort a congressional candidate by threatening to release a potentially damaging secret recording he had of him unless he pressured a woman Johnson was having an affair with to deny its existence and then removed evidence from his office while officers were executing a search warrant against him

Encouraged potential suspects and other witnesses to destroy evidence and lie to a federal grand jury investigating members of the far-right domestic terrorist group Oath Keepers and their involvement in the 1/6 insurrection in messages on an encrypted chat messaging board

Illegally operated his private business out of the mayor's office where he utilized public resources and personnel to improperly obtain government permits that enriched him personally and then encouraged at least one witness to lie to investigators if they were questioned

Filed three campaign finance reports that falsely claimed he had raised $222,690 for and loaned $100k to his "Honest Gabe for Congress" campaign to give the illusion he had popular support

Forged a professor's signature and notarized a document that falsely asserted the unaccredited Christian school she founded had acquired a credentialed professor to teach there resulting in her school improperly obtaining state licensing to operate

Repeatedly lied to a group of federal judges investigating his alleged misconduct

Violated a gag order imposed by the judge overseeing his criminal hush-money case by criticizing the jury in an interview he gave and was fined $1,000 and warned that his next violation may result in jail time

Blatantly and repeatedly violated a gag order which prohibited him from verbally attacking witnesses, jurors and family members of court staff in his New York hush money trial and was ordered to remove all posts that ran afoul of the gag order and pay a $9,000 fine by the judge who held him in contempt

Promised to pardon his personal aide and "body man" Walt Nauta if he was convicted of lying to the FBI about his knowledge of Trump's illegal retention of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago if he becomes President again

Lied under oath in a deposition and also at trial about his role in falsely asserting that Trump's private apartment in Trump Tower was nearly three times larger than it actually was on official tax forms

Illegally purchased or retained two apparently "brand new" handguns and ammunition in violation of a judge's order to hand over all firearms he owned outside of a single shotgun he was allowed to keep for personal protection

Helped remove a table from a room in the Capitol that was soon after used to physically assault police officers trying to regain control during the 1/6 insurrection and later lied to federal investigators by falsely telling them she never entered the Capitol during the riot

Helped his coconspirator illegally conceal $2.1 million they earned lobbying for the government of Qatar by creating an LLC with to hide the money from tax authorities and then lied to federal officials twice after they confronted him

Forged his ex-wife’s name on multiple home refinancing documents and a deed and also forged his colleague's signature on a financial statement he submitted to a court overseeing his divorce proceedings in an act so egregious the judge sentencing him called his actions "malfeasance that almost defies description"

Illegally obtained over $45,000 in Small Business Covid-Relief Funds out of $150,000 he applied for by claiming that dormant companies he owned with no employees actually had 6 employees and revenue of $800k and then lied to federal agents when they questioned him about it

Conspired with disgraced former Congressman George Santos to submit fraudulent campaign finance reports that falsely asserted he had loaned his campaign $500,000 because it made him look wealthier than he actually was and helped him get donor funding he very likely otherwise wouldn't have received

Urged his longtime personal assistant to lie to federal authorities investigating his illegal retention of classified documents by telling her point-blank "you don't know anything about the boxes" which CNN chief legal analyst Elie Honig characterized as "textbook obstruction of justice" and "textbook witness tampering" that has the protentional to be "really devastating" for Trump

Took advantage of his position as mayor to muscle himself onto a negotiating team involved with a $320 million MLB stadium project and later shared confidential information with the owner of the team with the expectation of getting "at least" a million-dollar political donation in return and then lied to federal agents when they questioned him about it

Brazenly called for the former Lt. Governor of Georgia to refuse to testify before a grand jury criminally investigating him for trying to overturn the 2020 election results in the state which multiple legal experts characterized as "witness tampering in real time"

Brazenly and publicly refused a judge's order to appear in court and face the defamation charges brought against him by a local hospital

Stole roughly $1 million from a NYC police officers union by filing falsified expense reports for personal items including lavish meals and luxury clothing and over-inflating the amount he should be reimbursed for countless other expenses for over four years to such a degree that prosecutors described it as a "personal piggy bank" and then lied to federal officials when they confronted him

Ordered a Mar-a-Lago maintenance worker to move and hide 64 boxes filled with highly classified and sensitive information after receiving a subpoena that ordered him to return all government documents in his possession

Pressured his personal attorney Evan Corcoran to lie to investigators about classified documents illegally in his possession and further asked, "what happens if we just don't respond at all or don't play ball with them"

Hid boxes filled with classified and highly sensitive government documents after his boss Donald Trump was subpoenaed for them which were later found when the FBI executed a search warrant at Mar-a-Lago and then lied to federal agents when they questioned him about it

Ordered his personal aide and "body man" Walt Nauta to move and hide 64 boxes filled with highly classified and sensitive information after receiving a subpoena that ordered him to return all government documents in his possession

Stored top-secret and classified documents he illegally took with him to Mar-a-Lago at the conclusion of his term in his unsecured office, bathroom, bedroom, ballroom and storage room in plain view for tens of thousands of guests and potential US adversaries to see and lied to his own attorneys about his knowledge of any classified documents in his possession which resulted in his lawyer unwittingly submitting a false sworn certification of that fact to federal investigators

Was possibly complicit in having a surveillance video storage room "accidentally" flooded in a failed attempt to cover up crimes with classified documents (the FBI recovered incriminating video anyways), or it is a total coincidence that a maintenance worker -- not just any worker but one who previously helped Trump's aide move boxes with classified documents -- would be careless enough to drain a pool damaging a room at a $200k initiation fee resort that contained additional videos the FBI had an active subpoena for

Illegally taped a court proceeding for her former chief deputy while seated in the gallery and then lied to the presiding judge when he confronted her

Coached a witness to obstruct justice and achieve a legal outcome he supposedly desired by giving them false information that prosecutors contend was meant to affect their testimony

Repeatedly lied under oath to the grand jury investigating a wide-ranging State House corruption scandal that involved his own son in an act that violated a plea agreement he made with state prosecutors to truthfully testify before the group

Pressured a sexual abuse victim's elderly parents to convince their son to retract his accusation that he knew about rampant sexual abuse by a team doctor he worked with and turned a blind eye to it for years

Filed a false police report that claimed she witnessed her ex-business partner's teenage son molesting his younger sibling from her home next door which police investigated and quickly determined was a lie

Refused repeated police commands to hand over an iPad they had a search warrant for and then "actively" resisted the officers as they placed her in handcuffs

Lied to a judge under oath about financial transfers he made in violation of a previous court order which resulted in a judge sentencing him to 10 days in jail and fining him $181,760

Lied to a judge about working for Goldman Sachs during a bail hearing for a friend who was accused of fraud

Refused to comply with a subpoena from NY Attorney General that demanded he turn over certain business records and was fined $10,000 a day and $110,000 in total by the judge who held him in contempt

Failed to pay over $625k in court-ordered child support even after a judge found he easily had the finances to do so and was held in contempt of court and jailed until he paid it off in full

Falsely asserted she was a paralegal to federal authorities so she could enter an immigration detention facility her romantic partner was being held at

Was indicted for official misconduct in office and tampering with a witness in an apparent attempt to cover his tracks

Forged signatures on at least nine absentee voter applications for people who were unaware he was submitting the request and lied to the county clerk by attesting he had permission to deliver the applications

Defied a Congressional subpoena requiring him to testify before the 1/6 Committee using specious claims of executive privilege and was sentenced to 4 months in jail

Filed a false police report erroneously claiming that a young child was being forced to perform sex acts on male customers at an adult bookstore he worked at which resulted in police using up valuable resources and time to investigate his accusation

Personally attempted to contact a 1/6 Committee witness presumably to pressure them to not disclose any damaging information about him when they testified before the committee

Strongly hinted that he would pardon people convicted of crimes related to the 1/6 insurrection by saying he'll be "looking at them very, very seriously," but only if they didn't cooperate with authorities

Defied a Congressional subpoena requiring him to testify before the January 6th Committee by citing legally dubious claims of executive privilege

Broke the terms of his probation by fraudulently asserting that 40 hours of work on his political campaign counted towards community service he was ordered to complete

Punched a detainee in the head multiple times with a closed fist while they were shackled to a bench and returned a short time later to punch him in the head a second time before spitting on him and later asked corrections officers who witnessed the assault to lie about what they saw to investigators

Shot an unarmed tenant five times as he tried to flee from her resulting in his death and then lied to police and claimed self-defense which State's Attorney Michelle Manning refuted because video surveillance clearly showed her victim was aggressive towards her in "no way, shape, or form"

Accepted a $30,200 campaign contribution from Nigerian billionaire Gilbert Chagoury through three "straw donors" and then lied to federal authorities after they confronted him about it

Falsely asserted he lived in the city of Baltimore on his official candidacy paperwork when he actually lived in the suburbs and was therefore ineligible to run for office in the city

Schemed to cover up evidence of his acceptance of bribes by lying to federal authorities who confronted him and "counseled" his coconspirator how to mislead federal investigators on multiple occasions without knowing that he was working as a cooperating witness

Illegally funneled $40,500 in campaign contributions from an Indiana casino through "straw donors" who were reimbursed through fake consulting fees and then lied to federal officials when they questioned him about it

Cashed out over $570,000 from a $1.5 million mortgage loan he was able to refinance by lying to his bank about outstanding tax liabilities and illegally diverted his employees' payroll taxes to his personal accounts in order to maintain a lavish lifestyle and pay down his own tax obligations

Lied under oath to the House Intelligence Committee about his contacts with WikiLeaks around the time they released stolen emails the Russian government hacked from Hillary Clinton's server, falsely named Randy Credico as his "back-channel" to the head of WikiLeaks in a subsequent letter to the committee and then urged Credico to either back him up or invoke his Fifth Amendment right to stay silent

Took photos or a video up a woman's skirt while she was seated at a state House legislative meeting and later destroyed his mobile phone after searching "how to completely wipe a phone before police" in a failed attempt to delete evidence which police were able to recover through other means

Falsely claimed a campaign donor's home was his official address in order to run for a state congressional seat in a district he didn't live in

Tried to bribe the NC state insurance commissioner with a $1.5 million donation to his reelection bid and another $250k donation from the NC Republican party in exchange for favorable treatment for a business associate friend of his and then lied to the FBI when they confronted him

Communicated through close intermediaries to his personal lawyer Michael Cohen that he would pardon him if he didn't cooperate with prosecutors and provide them with potentially damaging information about his business and financial dealings days after the FBI raided Cohen's office and residence

Conspired to illegally collect and fill out unsuspecting voters absentee and mail-in ballots to help Republican candidates in the 2018 midterm election and later lied to federal authorities when they questioned him

Used a government-issued credit card for personal expenses including gasoline, claimed mileage for trips that he used a government-owned vehicle for over a yearslong period, pressured a witness to lie to federal investigators and lied to investigators himself

Publicly signaled he would pardon his former campaign manager Paul Manafort if he refused to cooperate with the Mueller investigation after it was reported Manafort repeatedly lied to federal investigators in violation of his earlier plea agreement

Accepted over $900,000 from a well-connected political consultant in exchange for acting in his client's interests in secret by not disclosing the true source of the funds as required by state law and later lied to a grand jury about it in an attempt to cover it up

Lied to the FBI about his interactions with an agent of the Russian government while he was employed by the 2016 Trump campaign

Blatantly disregarded a new law that prevented the targeting of people of Latino descent showing complete disdain for "law and order" while also having had espoused excessive over-the-top rhetoric that claimed the opposite and was found guilty of criminal contempt of court

Voted in a district he no longer resided in and later unsuccessfully tried to bribe a local Housing Authority employee into falsifying a letter to election officials that attested he had only temporarily moved out of the district in exchange for a donation to the county Housing Authority

Illegally paid Iowa state senator Kent Sorenson $73,000 to switch his 2016 Presidential candidate endorsement from Michelle Bachmann to Ron Paul and then falsified campaign reports to cover it up

Coerced a subordinate into taking an online certification course he personally would profit from with the help of his chief deputy who proctored the sham exam and submitted the results to state officials

Conspired with a business executive to hide $524,000 in assets owed to an insurance company that was then left on the hook for a $6 million contract his coconspirator failed to fulfill and then intentionally lied to an IRS investigator when questioned about it

Repeatedly lied under oath and made false statements to the chief judge of a federal court by falsely claiming her had never hit, kicked, or punched his ex-wife when in fact he had done all three on multiple occasions

Illegally structured hush money payments of $1.7 million to elude federal bank reporting requirements in order to hide the fact he was paying the victim of his past sex crimes and then lied to Federal investigators about it

Illegally used his family, employees and friends as "straw donors" to donate $100k each to two political candidates and later interfered with the criminal case by attempting to influence a government witness

Gave an illegal $20,000 campaign contribution to Republican Senate candidate Wendy Long using a "straw donor" and then lied to federal officials when they questioned him

Lied to state officials investigating a wide-ranging scandal involving state Republican Speaker Mike Hubbard and other legislators about his knowledge of Hubbard's actions and how it affected his political success or failure

Accepted 50k to secretly and illegally lobby for the USA to remove a sanctioned organization from the "specially designated global terrorist" list and then lied to the FBI when they questioned him

Accepted $255,000 worth of lavish home renovations and over $236,000 in rental payments from billionaire business developer Eitan Wertheimer in exchange for using his position as NYPD Commissioner to lobby on Wertheimer's behalf with city officials, failed to report the additional income on his federal taxes and lied to federal investigators when confronted about it

Lied to a committee of judges investigating him for sexual harassment in an effort to shield himself from consequences for his behavior in what one law professor characterized as "sort of mind-blowing" for a federal judge to obstruct justice as it "betrayed his oath in the most fundamental way"

Offered to forgive one of his sexual assault victim's debt owed to him if her mother agreed to not pursue charges against him and urged another victim to lie to the police when they questioned her about his assault

Lied under oath to a Senate committee about his ties to disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff by falsely testifying that he had no special relationship with him when in fact he was intimately involved in blocking the approval of a Native American casino that Abramoff opposed

Accepted over $170k worth of international and domestic trips, meals and drinks totaling "many thousands of dollars," tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions, box suite tickets to concerts and sporting events and numerous free fundraisers paid for by Jack Abramoff in exchange for supporting and/or opposing legislation that would benefit Abramoff and then lied under oath to a congressional committee when questioned about his actions

Lied on a sworn affidavit where he falsely claimed to have no assets in an attempt to have taxpayers pay for a court-appointed attorney to represent him at his trial when in reality he had more than enough assets and collateral to pay for his own attorney

Stole $6,200 dollars from the sheriff department's bank account which he used to pay for his re-election parties in 1998 and 2002 and to reimburse an employee for a travel expense and then obstructed justice by attempting to cover his tracks on expense reports