Special Counsel in Trump Case is SUNY O Grad

By WRILEY NELSON
ONEONTA

Justice Department Special Counsel Jack Smith, selected in November to prosecute the classified documents case against former President Donald Trump, graduated from SUNY Oneonta in 1991. Smith grew up in Clay, outside of Syracuse, and earned his Doctor of Law degree at Harvard Law. He started his career as a prosecutor in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office before moving to the U.S. attorney’s office in Brooklyn. Smith eventually rose to lead the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Unit and oversaw cases against Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and former Representative Rick Renzi (R-AZ). Before returning to the Justice Department, Smith spent several years prosecuting war criminals at the Kosovo Specialist Prosecutor’s Office in The Hague, Netherlands.

Smith has kept a low profile throughout his career, often preferring to work in the background and out of the spotlight. He has given few public statements and has proved so elusive that—according to an article in “The New York Times”—an appearance in a Subway restaurant for lunch became news in the Justice Department headquarters across town. It appears that he will use his mysterious reputation to keep opposing counsel guessing. No current SUNY Oneonta political science professor taught Smith.

“The men and women of the United States intelligence community and our armed forces dedicate their lives to protecting our nation and its people,” Smith said in his most recent public statement, on June 9. “Our laws that protect national defense information are critical to the safety and security of the United States and they must be enforced. Violations of those laws put our country at risk.”

According to a recent report from “Slate,” Smith will attempt to speak to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger about his infamous phone call with former president Trump shortly after the 2020 election. Smith’s team has also reportedly examined an alleged “fake electors” scheme in seven swing states. At least two fake electors have testified before grand juries in exchange for limited immunity. In a rare move, Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani volunteered to be interviewed by Smith’s office as part of a proffer agreement, in which a defendant agrees to provide information on the understanding that it will not be used against them.

It is typically used “with a target’s decision that he or she does not believe they can win at trial and therefore must make a deal,” Former federal prosecutor Robert Katzberg explained.

The special prosecutor has also reportedly interviewed at least two dozen Secret Service agents.

The collection of cases Smith oversees is complex. Despite the Southern District of Florida’s reputation for quick, efficient action, many commentators are pessimistic about his chances of finishing the proceedings before the 2024 election heats up. As a New York real estate developer, Trump has decades of experience in delaying and thwarting legal action. In this case, he has a definitely-set clock to run out. However the investigation plays out, Oneonta students will have a heavy-hitting alumnus in the news to keep an eye on.