Rep. Tiffany’s Bill to Hold DOJ Bad Actors Accountable Passes House Judiciary Committee

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Federal Accountability in Interviews Reform (FAIR) Act introduced by Congressman Tom Tiffany (WI-07) passed the House Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support. H.R. 5736, the FAIR Act, would require all Department of Justice (DOJ) law enforcement officers, agents, and employees to record both custodial and non-custodial interviews of U.S. citizens who are suspected of having committed a criminal offense. 

“The DOJ should serve every U.S. citizen with open, fair, and impartial justice; instead, they are weaponizing their power against the American people,” said Congressman Tiffany. “The FAIR Act will hold the DOJ accountable and ensure fairness for criminal defendants.”

Since 2014, the DOJ has had a policy in place that presumes that custodial interviews be electronically recorded. However, without a law in place that requires interviews to be recorded, DOJ agents and officers are free to ignore the policy without any consequences. In fact, the FBI’s standard practice is for agents to take handwritten notes during an interview and summarize those notes in part on memory in Form 302. 

The abuse of Form 302 was particularly brought to the limelight by the irregular handling, multiple drafts, and heavy editing of an FD-302 interview with Lieutenant General Michael Flynn. 

27 states – including Wisconsin – currently mandate the recording of custodial interviews in some form.   

Rep. Tiffany’s FAIR Act remarks can be found here and here. The text can be found here.

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