Jack Smith questions strength of Cassidy Hutchinson testimony
A newly released transcript of former Special Counsel Jack Smith’s Dec. 17, 2025 House Judiciary Committee deposition shows him telling lawmakers that key portions of ex‑White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson’s Jan. 6 Committee testimony were second‑ or third‑hand hearsay and would be subject to exclusion or limited weight in court. Smith said he interviewed people Hutchinson relied on, including an officer who was in the presidential vehicle on Jan. 6, and found their accounts differed from the dramatic version she recounted, leading him to view her evidence as less powerful than firsthand testimony for any prosecution involving former President Donald Trump.
📌 Key Facts
- In a Dec. 17, 2025 closed‑door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee, former Special Counsel Jack Smith discussed how he evaluated Cassidy Hutchinson’s Jan. 6 Committee testimony.
- Smith said that if he were a defense attorney, he would seek to preclude parts of Hutchinson’s testimony because they were hearsay and that 'a number' of her statements were second‑ or even third‑hand.
- He said investigators interviewed people Hutchinson cited, including the officer in the car with Trump, and that while that officer confirmed Trump was very angry and wanted to go to the Capitol, the account did not match Hutchinson’s second‑hand description of Trump grabbing the steering wheel.
- Smith emphasized that second‑hand hearsay may not be admissible and would in any case be less powerful than firsthand accounts when assessing evidence against Trump related to the 2020 election and Jan. 6.
📊 Relevant Data
The January 6 Capitol riot defendants are overwhelmingly White (92%), with Hispanics at 5.4%, Blacks at 1.4%, and Asians at 1%, compared to the U.S. population where Whites are about 58% according to 2023 Census data.
A Demographic and Legal Profile of January 6 Prosecutions — Seton Hall University
Men comprised 81.3% of the charged January 6 rioters, while women were 12.7%, compared to the U.S. population where men are approximately 49%.
A Demographic and Legal Profile of January 6 Prosecutions — Seton Hall University
The average age of January 6 arrestees is 40, with two-thirds being 35 or older.
The Capitol Rioters Aren’t Like Other Extremists — The Atlantic
The January 6 Committee consisted of 7 Democrats and 2 Republicans (Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger), after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi rejected two Republican nominees, Jim Jordan and Jim Banks.
Pelosi Rejects 2 GOP Nominees For The Jan. 6 Panel, Citing 'Integrity' Of The Probe — NPR
As of January 2025, 1,583 people had been arrested for the January 6 riot, with 1,270 convicted, but on January 20, 2025, President Trump granted clemency to all but 14 of them.
38% of U.S. residents, including 61% of Republicans, believe the January 6 events were protests by patriots to stop a stolen election.
The Trump Administration, January 2025 — Marist Poll