In a closed-door deposition before the House Judiciary Committee, Special Counsel Jack Smith cast doubt on the reliability of key testimony from the January 6 Committee hearings. The eight-hour session, which took place earlier this week, scrutinized Smith's prosecutorial strategies and case management as the Biden administration's appointed special counsel investigating President Donald Trump.
The deposition transcript, released to the public on December 31, 2025, sheds light on how Smith's team approached witness credibility and the evaluation of evidence during their investigation. Among the witnesses discussed was Cassidy Hutchinson, whose testimony during the January 6 Committee hearings garnered national attention due to several striking claims about President Trump's actions related to the Capitol events.
Hutchinson's most publicized assertion involved an alleged episode inside a Secret Service vehicle, where she claimed President Trump, frustrated by being denied a trip to the Capitol after his speech at the Ellipse, tried to seize the steering wheel from Secret Service agents. This account has been consistently refuted by Secret Service personnel present at the time, despite its persistent circulation in political and media narratives.
During his deposition, Smith provided a candid assessment of the evidentiary challenges posed by Hutchinson's testimony. He acknowledged that a significant portion of her account was based on secondhand or thirdhand information. "If I were a defense attorney and Ms. Hutchinson were a witness, the first thing I would do was seek to preclude some of her testimony because it was hearsay," Smith stated, according to Fox News reporting.
Smith further elaborated on the limitations of hearsay in criminal proceedings, emphasizing that much of Hutchinson's testimony stemmed from other people's conversations rather than her direct observations. The prosecution team recognized these constraints, which could affect the admissibility and potency of her statements in court.
The Special Counsel's office conducted an independent investigation into the steering wheel incident, interviewing the Secret Service officer who was in the presidential vehicle. This officer's firsthand account significantly differed from Hutchinson's secondhand narrative, with Smith confirming that, although President Trump expressed a desire to go to the Capitol, the details diverged from Hutchinson's version.
Additionally, the deposition addressed Hutchinson's claims regarding President Trump's awareness of armed individuals at the rally. Smith indicated that other witness interviews yielded divergent accounts, further questioning the accuracy of Hutchinson's testimony.
Smith's revelation during his deposition highlights the challenges prosecutors face when relying on indirect witness testimonies in high-profile cases. While Hutchinson was deemed a "star" witness by some, the recent insights from the Special Counsel suggest a more nuanced evaluation of her contributions to the January 6 inquiry.
