More than a dozen U.S. Justice Department employees who worked on investigations and prosecutions related to former President Donald Trump have been fired, CBS News has confirmed. The employees were part of a team led by former special counsel Jack Smith, who led two major investigations into Trump’s classified documents and his 2020 election conduct.

The firings came after Acting Attorney General James McHenry determined that the officials could not be trusted to carry out President Trump’s agenda. “They played a significant role in the prosecution of the president and were deemed to have failed to faithfully carry out the president’s orders,” a Justice Department official explained.

Smith, appointed by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2022, led investigations into Trump’s handling of classified material and his actions surrounding the 2020 election, both of which were dismissed after Trump’s 2024 election victory. After his dismissal, Smith said DOJ policy prevents him from prosecuting a sitting president.

The dismissals coincide with Trump’s broader push to overhaul the Justice Department. Last week, the president signed an executive order aimed at what he described as the “weaponization of the federal government” and cited Smith’s investigations.

The decision to charge defendants in the Capitol riot on Jan. 6 with obstruction of justice drew a rebuke from the Justice Department. The firings coincide with other changes at the Justice Department, including a review of the top federal prosecutor in the United States, an allegation recently limited by the Supreme Court.

Smith resigned after completing his investigation, defending his impartiality despite continued accusations that Trump was politically motivated. In addition, a senior official in the Justice Department’s Public Integrity Division who advised Smith’s team resigned after being reappointed.