Judge Called the Powell Criminal Case Baseless — Then DOJ Prosecutors Showed Up at the Fed Unannounced

# Judge Called the Powell Criminal Case Baseless — Then DOJ Prosecutors Showed Up at the Fed Unannounced

> **Quick answer:** Chief Judge James Boasberg ruled in March 2026 that DOJ prosecutors had "essentially zero evidence to suspect Chair Powell of a crime" and blocked their subpoenas against the Federal Reserve. The ruling described the subpoenas as "mere pretexts" to pressure Powell into resigning. Weeks later, prosecutors from Jeanine Pirro's DC office showed up unannounced at the Fed's headquarters construction site asking for a "tour" — and were turned away. The episode has direct implications for interest rate policy, Fed independence, and markets heading into May 15, when Trump has threatened to fire Powell.

The Department of Justice lost in federal court — so prosecutors showed up at the front door instead. The case against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is collapsing as a legal matter. But the pressure campaign is escalating as a political one, and for investors, the two tracks matter equally right now.

## A Judge Said "Essentially Zero Evidence" — Then the Prosecutors Came Anyway

On March 13, 2026, Chief Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., did something federal judges rarely do: he quashed DOJ subpoenas and called out the government's motive directly.

Boasberg's ruling found that prosecutors from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro's office had "essentially zero evidence to suspect Chair Powell of a crime." More pointedly, he wrote that there was "abundant evidence that the subpoenas' dominant (if not sole) purpose is to harass and pressure Powell either to yield to the President or to resign and make way for a Fed Chair who will." He called the subpoenas "mere pretexts."