Judge Upholds Quashing of DOJ Subpoenas in Powell Probe

A federal judge in Washington on Friday upheld his earlier decision to quash two subpoenas issued by the Justice Department as part of a criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, citing a lack of evidence and concerns over improper motives.

Chief U.S. District Judge James Boasberg rejected the department's motion for reconsideration in a six-page opinion, stating that prosecutors had failed to provide new evidence or demonstrate any legal error in his March 13 ruling. The subpoenas, served on the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors in January, sought records related to cost overruns in a renovation project at the central bank's headquarters in Washington and Powell's testimony to Congress about the work. "The government's arguments do not come close to convincing the Court that a different outcome is warranted," Boasberg wrote, adding that investigators had presented "no evidence whatsoever of fraud."

The investigation stems from a multiyear project to update the Federal Reserve's 1930s-era buildings, approved by the board in 2017 with an initial budget of $1.9 billion. Construction began in 2021, but costs rose to $2.5 billion due to unexpected...