A federal judge says she intends to appoint an ex-top federal prosecutor in the nation's capital during President Donald Trump's first term to investigate whether she was purposefully misled by lawyers and administration officials in a lawsuit challenging the renovation of a historic public golf course along the Potomac River.
Former U.S. Attorney Jessie Liu would examine whether officials with the Interior Department and the National Park Service and attorneys with the Department of Justice violated ethics or misled U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes during the course of the case, which was initiated in February by the DC Preservation League and two golfers.
Liu previously served as the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, the chief federal prosecutor for the nation's capital, during Trump's first term. Her appointment would put a former top Justice Department official in the position of reviewing the government's own conduct.
The case concerns the renovation of a historic public golf course along the Potomac River. The lawsuit, brought by the DC Preservation League and two golfers, challenges the project and the way the government handled it.
The investigation would focus on the government's conduct during the litigation, including whether officials and government lawyers violated ethics rules or misled the judge. Reyes said she intends to make the appointment, setting up a review of the Interior Department, the National Park Service and the Justice Department's handling of the case.
