New major 'clash' spawned 'one of the most contentious episodes' at DOJ: report
New reporting in The New York Times detailed a major "clash" at the Department of Justice over a Columbia University investigation that led to a rebellion on the part of prosecutors in the civil rights division.
Top DOJ official Emil Bove III launched the investigation into students who "barged into" a building at the Columbia-affiliated Barnard College in February, according to The Times. The students were protesting the expulsion of students accused of disrupting a “History of Modern Israel” class, during which a security guard was allegedly attacked.
The primary target was "one particular student group, Columbia University Apartheid Divest," the report said. "Prodded by Mr. Bove, prosecutors in the civil rights division were told to obtain a membership list of the group. Investigators, however, pushed back on those instructions because they were skeptical such a list even existed, given the amorphous nature of online forums, and even if it did, scrutinizing people for their membership seemed like a possible violation of their First Amendment rights," according to The Times's sources....