AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
AP and CNN report a rejected indictment request. Sarah Matthews calls it a revenge campaign; Julie Kelly calls the refusal jury nullification. The proposed charges and the grand jury's reasons have not been publicly detailed.
Case period:
Published by The Dispute Index editorial teamPublished Updated
Overview
AP reported on October 27 (opens in a new tab) that a Washington grand jury rejected prosecutors' request to indict former White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson. CNN's Evan Perez also reported the failed request (opens in a new tab). AP's report relies on two people familiar with the matter. It says the details of prosecutors' allegations were not immediately clear.
Sarah Matthews (opens in a new tab), a former White House deputy press secretary, says Trump has sought to punish Hutchinson for her testimony about January 6. Julie Kelly (opens in a new tab) calls the refusal jury nullification and alleges that D.C. residents organized to obstruct DOJ.
Adam Kinzinger (opens in a new tab), who served on the January 6 committee, says he still believes Hutchinson. The disagreement concerns the justification for the prosecution effort. The grand jury's decision is not a finding about the accuracy of her 2022 testimony.
People in this case
- Cassidy HutchinsonDirectly involved
Donald TrumpDirectly involved
Adam KinzingerCommented
Sarah MatthewsCommented
Timeline
2 timeline entries on this page. Dates: October 27, 2026
October 2026
AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson
Source release
AP attributes the rejected indictment to two people familiar with the matter. The proposed allegations were not publicly detailed.
[01]AP reports the grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson
AP attributes the rejected indictment to two people familiar with the matter. The proposed allegations were not publicly detailed.
AP reports the grand jury declined to indict HutchinsonOctober 27 report, opening paragraphs[02]CNN reports the Hutchinson indictment attempt failed
Evan Perez reports the failed request for an indictment and says the specific proposed charges were unknown.
CNN reports the Hutchinson indictment attempt failedThe Lead, October 27, segment immediately before 17:50:08 and following discussionMatthews and Kelly offer opposing accounts of the prosecution effort
Reaction
Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign; Kelly calls the refusal jury nullification.
[03]Matthews criticizes the attempt to prosecute Hutchinson
Sarah Matthews responds to reports that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
Matthews criticizes the attempt to prosecute HutchinsonOriginal post and quoted-post context[04]Kelly criticizes the grand jury refusal
Julie Kelly responds to reports that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
Kelly criticizes the grand jury refusalOriginal post and quoted-post context
Claims
Claims separate what was said from what is contested. Follow each source for the original wording and context.
What's disputed
Disputed claim
The attempt to prosecute Cassidy Hutchinson was retaliation for her January 6 testimony.
What is disputed
Matthews calls the prosecution effort a revenge campaign. Kelly calls the refusal jury nullification and supports DOJ's pursuit of Hutchinson.
Sources (2)
- Matthews criticizes the attempt to prosecute HutchinsonOriginal post and quoted-post context
- Kelly criticizes the grand jury refusalOriginal post and quoted-post context
Response record
Responses
Choose one response filter, or select All responses to see the full record.
4 responses. Newest first.
Adam KinzingerFormer U.S. representative and January 6 committee memberBefore this statement
He recalls hearing Hutchinson's testimony.
"She threw away her career to tell the truth. I believed her then and I still do."
CondemnedCase context: AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
Full statement and sources
Kinzinger says he continues to believe Hutchinson and criticizes the attempt to prosecute her.
After the statement
He expresses continued belief in her account after the grand jury's refusal.
Kinzinger defends Hutchinson after the rejected indictmentOriginal post and quoted-post contextWhy this label?
Relative to the prosecution effort, he rejects the premise that Hutchinson lied and criticizes DOJ's attempt.
This label describes the statement's response within the context above.
Sarah MatthewsFormer White House deputy press secretaryBefore this statement
Matthews praises Hutchinson's decision to testify.
"I’m thrilled to see a grand jury refuse to go along with his vindictive revenge campaign."
CondemnedCase context: AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
Full statement and sources
Matthews says Trump has tried to punish Hutchinson for her testimony.
After the statement
She welcomes the grand jury's refusal.
Matthews criticizes the attempt to prosecute HutchinsonOriginal post and quoted-post contextWhy this label?
She condemns the effort to prosecute Hutchinson as political retaliation.
This label describes the statement's response within the context above.
Julie KellyPolitical commentator and publisher of Declassified with Julie Kelly Before this statement
Kelly quotes a report that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
"More jury nullification from activist DC residents who have organized to sabotage Trump’s DOJ to hold lawfare perpetrators accountable."
Defended or excusedCase context: AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
Full statement and sources
Kelly calls the refusal jury nullification and says DOJ sought to hold its targets accountable.
After the statement
She alleges that D.C. residents organized to obstruct DOJ. The post does not set out the proposed charges.
Kelly criticizes the grand jury refusalOriginal post and quoted-post contextWhy this label?
She supports the effort to prosecute Hutchinson and characterizes the grand jury's refusal as obstruction.
This label describes the statement's response within the context above.
Jason CrowU.S. representative from Colorado, posting as @RepJasonCrow on XBefore this statement
Crow praises Hutchinson's testimony about January 6.
"And today’s grand jury showed true courage in rejecting Trump’s abuses of power."
CondemnedCase context: AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
Full statement and sources
Crow characterizes the effort to indict Hutchinson as one of Trump's abuses of power and praises the grand jury's reported refusal.
After the statement
He says ordinary citizens are holding the president accountable.
Jason Crow responds to the reported Hutchinson grand-jury refusal · Jason CrowOriginal post, last edited 6:14 PM on October 27, 2026Why this label?
Relative to the attempt to prosecute Hutchinson, Crow criticizes the effort as an abuse of power and praises the grand jury for rejecting it.
This label describes the statement's response within the context above.
Sources
(6)
Original post
Matthews criticizes the attempt to prosecute Hutchinson
About this source
Sarah Matthews responds to reports that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
- Author
- Sarah Matthews
- Published
- Accessed
Original post
Kelly criticizes the grand jury refusal
About this source
Julie Kelly responds to reports that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
- Author
- Julie Kelly
- Published
- Accessed
Original post
Jason Crow responds to the reported Hutchinson grand-jury refusal
About this source
Crow praises Hutchinson's testimony and the grand jury that, according to The Washington Post, declined to indict her. His post quotes the Post's report.
- Author
- Jason Crow
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
CNN reports the Hutchinson indictment attempt failed
Relevant passage: The Lead, October 27, segment immediately before 17:50:08 and following discussion
About this source
Evan Perez reports the failed request for an indictment and says the specific proposed charges were unknown.
- Author
- Evan Perez, with Jake Tapper
- Published
- Accessed
Reporting
AP reports the grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson
Relevant passage: October 27 report, opening paragraphs
About this source
AP attributes the rejected indictment to two people familiar with the matter. The proposed allegations were not publicly detailed.
- Published
- Accessed
Original post
Kinzinger defends Hutchinson after the rejected indictment
About this source
Adam Kinzinger responds to reports that a grand jury declined to indict Hutchinson.
- Author
- Adam Kinzinger
- Published
- Accessed
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Cite this record
- Publisher
- The Dispute Index
- Title
- AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign
- First published
- Last updated
- Permalink
- https://disputeindex.com/cases/cassidy-hutchinson-grand-jury-declines-indictment-revenge-dispute
The Dispute Index. "AP reports a grand jury declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson; Matthews calls the effort a revenge campaign". First published: 2026-11-09. Last updated: 2026-11-09. https://disputeindex.com/cases/cassidy-hutchinson-grand-jury-declines-indictment-revenge-dispute