US Justice Dept civil rights unit faces mass exodus

Source: Reuters

US Justice Dept civil rights unit faces mass exodus

Sarah N. Lynch
Wed, July 23, 2025 at 1:06 PM EDT·3 min read

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department office tasked with protecting peoples' civil rights has lost 368 employees since President Donald Trump took office, in a mass exodus that has coincided with a dramatic policy shift away from its historical mission of protecting marginalized populations.

The staffing decrease at the Civil Rights Division, disclosed on Wednesday in a congressional memo from U.S. Senator Peter Welch, represents an unprecedented exodus of career officials who usually remain in their roles from administration to administration, regardless of political party. He said DOJ provided the figures to his office on July 15.

Prior to Trump's inauguration, the division employed more than 400 attorneys. Reuters could not determine how many of the departed 368 officials worked as attorneys, as opposed to other roles such as office support staff. Of those who left, 270 took the government's deferred retirement program while 98 resigned.

Welch, a Democrat from Vermont, released the figures ahead of a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday where Harmeet Dhillon, Trump's head of the Civil Rights Division, will testify to Congress for the first time since her confirmation hearing in February.

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