Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers' charges
Legal group accuses U.S. Attorney and deputies of ethical violations in seeking indictments.
AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made
FILE - U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Dec. 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
Photograph: Washington Top News (embedded from source)
What this story says
- A legal watchdog group has filed bar complaints against U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two of her lieutenants.
- The complaints accuse Pirro and her staff of violating ethical duties by seeking to charge six Democratic lawmakers.
- The lawmakers were investigated for a video that urged troops to resist unlawful orders.
- The Legal Accountability Center filed the complaints in New York and Virginia.
Who covered it
Percentages are shares of the 16 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. Coverage measured .
Trust
42/100
Craft
60/100
Hype
20/100
16 sources · methodology
Thin on the right so far
None of the 16 outlets with a published leaning rating that ran this story are rated right.
This story is still being watched, so it is a count and not yet a finding. Coverage keeps arriving for hours after an event, and a side that has published nothing this morning may publish by tonight. If it is still true when we stop checking, we will say so plainly.
The Legal Accountability Center has filed bar complaints against U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two of her deputies. The complaints, lodged in New York and Virginia, allege that Pirro and her subordinates, Carlton Davis and Steven Vandervelden, violated their ethical duties. These alleged violations occurred during their effort to charge six Democratic lawmakers with federal crimes.
The lawmakers faced scrutiny for appearing in a video that encouraged troops to resist unlawful orders. Pirro's office, through spokesperson Tim Lauer, stated that the decision to issue an indictment rests with a grand jury, not prosecutors. Lauer described the disciplinary process attempt as a "frivolous complaint" aimed at "weaponiz[ing] the disciplinary process against prosecutors for doing their jobs."
In February, a grand jury declined to indict the six lawmakers, who had previously served in the military or intelligence agencies. Former President Donald Trump had publicly accused them of sedition. The Legal Accountability Center's complaint asserts that Pirro's office lacked a legal basis for its actions, suggesting the sole motivation was "political animus" and a desire to intimidate perceived enemies of the federal government and the President.
Disagreement on prosecutorial intent
The Legal Accountability Center claims Pirro and her subordinates abused their prosecutorial powers to seek "meritless" indictments against President Donald Trump’s "perceived political enemies." Pirro's office, via spokesperson Tim Lauer, stated that attempting to use the disciplinary process against prosecutors for performing their duties constitutes a "frivolous complaint."
What the coverage left out
No right-rated reports covered this story. The left-rated and centre-rated reports did not mention the specific federal crimes the lawmakers were accused of, beyond appearing in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders. Details regarding the specific rules of professional conduct for attorneys that Pirro and her colleagues allegedly violated were not included in the digests.
Still developing. We have re-checked which outlets are covering this 7 times, most recently on 25 Aug 2026, 20:45, and will add the sides that appear.
How each side covered it
Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.
Left
10 rated outlets
- Ten left-rated reports detailed the filing of bar complaints against U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two lieutenants by the Legal Accountability Center. These reports stated the complaints accuse Pirro and her subordinates of violating ethical duties in their attempt to charge six Democratic lawmakers. The lawmakers were accused of federal crimes for appearing in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders. The complaints were filed in New York and Virginia. The Associated Press, whose reporting was carried by many of these outlets, noted that Pirro's office stated it is a grand jury's job, not prosecutors', to decide whether to hand up an indictment. The Associated Press also reported that Pirro's critics have accused her of pursuing other legally dubious and politically motivated cases at the Republican president’s behest. The Legal Accountability Center's co-founder, Michael Teter, was quoted stating, "Prosecutors have enormous power, and with that power comes an obligation to exercise independent legal judgment rather than use the criminal justice system to carry out a president’s political demands."
Centre
6 rated outlets
- Five centre-rated reports covered the filing of bar complaints against U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two lieutenants by the Legal Accountability Center. These reports indicated the complaints allege ethical violations in the attempt to charge six Democratic lawmakers with federal crimes for appearing in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders. The complaints were filed in New York and Virginia. The reports noted Pirro's office stated that a grand jury, not prosecutors, decides on indictments. The Associated Press, whose reporting was carried by many of these outlets, was cited as the source for these details.
Right
0 rated outlets
No outlet rated right has run this story so far. We are still checking, and will say plainly if that does not change.
Questions about this coverage
- How did the left and right cover Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers'…?
- Of the 16 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 63% are rated left, 37% are rated centre, 0% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
- Is Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers'… left or right?
- Neither side dominates it. Of the 16 rated outlets on this story, 63% are rated left, 37% are rated centre, 0% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
- Is the coverage of Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers'… biased?
- Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers' charges is one event reported by 16 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
- Which side is not reporting Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers'…?
- When we first saw this story, outlets rated right had barely covered it. Coverage accretes for hours after an event, so that is where to look rather than a verdict — the split above is the current count, and it is the one to read.
- Which outlets covered Watchdog files bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro over lawmakers'…?
- 16 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
- Who filed the bar complaints against Jeanine Pirro?
- The bar complaints against U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro and two of her lieutenants were filed by a legal watchdog group called the Legal Accountability Center. The group stated that Pirro and her subordinates violated ethical duties in their attempt to charge six Democratic lawmakers.
- Why were the Democratic lawmakers being investigated?
- The six Democratic lawmakers were investigated for appearing in a video that called on troops to resist unlawful orders. A grand jury ultimately refused to indict them. The Legal Accountability Center's complaints allege that the attempt to charge them was an abuse of prosecutorial power.
- What is Jeanine Pirro's office's response?
- A spokesperson for Jeanine Pirro's office, Tim Lauer, stated that it is a grand jury's role, not prosecutors', to decide whether to issue an indictment. Lauer described the filing of bar complaints as an attempt to "weaponize the disciplinary process" and called it a "frivolous complaint."
Read it at the source
16 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.
Left
10- Jeanine Pirro in hot water as bar complaint finds 'patently improper' abuse of power (opens Raw Story in a new tab)
- Jeanine Pirro faces bar complaint over attempt to charge Democratic lawmakers (opens The Independent in a new tab)
The Independent — is The Independent biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Morning Call in a new tab)
The Morning Call — is The Morning Call biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Beckley Register-Herald in a new tab)
Beckley Register-Herald — is Beckley Register-Herald biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Washington Post in a new tab)
The Washington Post — is The Washington Post biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Seattle Times in a new tab)
The Seattle Times — is The Seattle Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Toronto Star in a new tab)
The Toronto Star — is The Toronto Star biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens El Paso Inc. in a new tab)
El Paso Inc. — is El Paso Inc. biased? Our profile of this outlet
Show 2 more
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Associated Press News in a new tab)
Associated Press News — is Associated Press News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Hamilton Spectator in a new tab)
The Hamilton Spectator — is The Hamilton Spectator biased? Our profile of this outlet
Centre
6- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Yuma Sun in a new tab)
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens The Record in a new tab)
The Record — is The Record biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Ottumwa Courier in a new tab)
Ottumwa Courier — is Ottumwa Courier biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Washington Top News in a new tab)
Washington Top News — is Washington Top News biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens Finger Lakes Times in a new tab)
Finger Lakes Times — is Finger Lakes Times biased? Our profile of this outlet
- Watchdog files bar complaint against Jeanine Pirro over bid to indict 6 Democratic lawmakers (opens WKMG in a new tab)
Right
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
Not rated
0No outlet in this group ran the story.
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