U.S. special counsel Jack Smith has resigned

Special counsel Jack Smith speaks to the media about an indictment of former President Donald Trump, Aug. 1, 2023, at an office of the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

WASHINGTON — U.S. Special counsel Jack Smith has resigned from the Justice Department effective Friday, according to a court filing.

The filing comes amid a legal fight to stop Attorney General Merrick Garland from releasing the special counsel’s report of his investigations into then-President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election and the alleged mishandling of classified documents after Trump left office.

Smith gave his final, two-volume report to the attorney general on Tuesday. Garland has indicated he will not release the part of the report regarding the classified documents investigation.

Smith’s office has been in the wind-down process for weeks, and his resignation before Trump takes office isn’t unexpected. In addition to finalizing its report and sending it to the attorney general, Smith’s team had also handed off an ongoing appeal over the special counsel’s office powers to other attorneys at the Department of Justice and dismissed the two federal criminal cases against Trump because of his return to the presidency.

This is a breaking news story and will be updated.