interim U.S. Attorney for Wyoming Darin Smith (Photo: Wyoming state senate)
President Donald Trump's Justice Department is calling on the U.S. Senate to confirm interim U.S. Attorney for Wyoming Darin Smith despite major mistakes in at least nine federal cases.
A Wyoming judge has dismissed nine cases without prejudice after Smith broke some of the hard and fast rules governed by the courts to ensure fair prosecutions. Smith, who was previously an executive for the Christian Broadcasting Network, is also a twice-failed congressional candidate for the state's at-large seat. He briefly served as a state senator for District 6 in 2025.
According to the statement, posted by national security expert and courtwatcher Marcy Wheeler, in one case Smith handed out his business card to grand jury panel members if they needed to reach out to him with questions. In another incident, Smith asked for the list of the grand jurors, who are supposed to be anonymous and strictly protected by law. Smith even told the jurors that the defendants were guilty, saying, "they did what you are going to hear about."
"After a presentation and vote, but before going on the record for the next case, the foreperson asked something to the effect of 'are you going to give us a hard case?' At that point, USA Smith stood up and said something to the effect of, 'like I told you guys before, we're only giving you 'slam dunks[,]'" the court document said. "The AUSA who witnessed this corrected that statement by telling the grand jury there would be hard cases and then left the room."
Loana Dominguez, a defense investigator for the Federal Public Defender, gave a sworn statement to the court at the end of April in which grand jurors revealed Smith called the defendants "bad guys," "murderers," and that deliberations "won't take too long." Indeed, one grand jury came back with a decision in just three minutes.
The witness then said that they'd be willing to speak to the judge in the case, but that they were too scared of what Smith might do to reveal their name publicly.
Due to Smith's actions, the nine cases that were dismissed involved two accused meth dealers, an alleged child abuser and an accused murderer, Wheeler pointed out.
The latest action on Smith's appointment shows that the vote for Smith will be held on Monday in the U.S. Senate.
The Senate Judiciary Democrats account on X posted a screen capture of the cases saying, "Darin Smith, a Trump pick for U.S. Attorney, violated defendants’ right to due process by making 'inflammatory and inappropriate' statements before a grand jury, per federal judges. Indictments against nine criminal defendants were just dismissed, jeopardizing public safety."
Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) added, "Darin Smith is wholly unqualified to be a U.S. Attorney. And he’s part of a partisan package of ~50 Trump nominees that Senate Republicans are pushing through today. He should NEVER be confirmed."
The Northern Arapaho Business Council issued a statement last Thursday calling Smith wholly unqualified.
“The Northern Arapaho Tribe condemns the reported conduct and comments made by Interim United States Attorney Darin Smith during federal grand jury proceedings in Wyoming," the statement read. “... As Wyoming’s highest-ranking federal prosecutor, Mr. Smith carries one of the most important responsibilities in Indian Country: ensuring that justice is fairly and lawfully administered on the Wind River Reservation, home to the Northern Arapaho Tribe and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe. His office is entrusted with prosecuting serious violent crimes under the federal Major Crimes Act — crimes that deeply impact Native families and communities.
“The Tribe finds these actions deeply troubling and inconsistent with the solemn responsibility entrusted to the United States Attorney’s Office," it continued. "Federal prosecutors are expected to uphold the integrity of the justice system, not undermine it through reckless comments, improper familiarity with grand jurors, or conduct that creates the appearance of bias and prejudice."
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