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September 29, 2018

Whitehouse Outlines Proper Elements of FBI Investigation of Kavanaugh Sexual Assault Allegations

Washington, DC – Today, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a former United States Attorney, outlined the proper elements of an FBI investigation of sexual assault allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.  The Senate has delayed a vote on the Kavanaugh nomination to allow the FBI to conduct such an investigation.  Whitehouse’s statement is below.

“As a former United States Attorney familiar with investigations, and given the short timeframe, I would expect the following elements of any FBI investigation:

  1. Adequate staffing, with teams working in parallel to investigate separate allegations, not sequentially.
  2. Support from the Judiciary Committee for rapid immunity and subpoena decisions as needed.
  3. Corroboration efforts, including efforts to investigate relevant contemporaneous evidence of penchant for drunkenness and inappropriate treatment of women, particularly where specifically related to incidents under investigation. 
  4. Review of witnesses’ veracity, including Kavanaugh’s sworn committee testimony, as it relates to incidents under investigation or contemporaneous penchant for drunken misbehavior involving women.
  5. Reliance on trauma-informed forensic interviews and related trauma-informed investigative techniques pursuant to sexual assault investigations best practices.
  6. The thoroughness, initiative, professionalism and diligence for which the FBI is known.”

Press Contact

Meaghan McCabe, (202) 224-2921
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