DOJ declines to charge Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer's husband with alleged sex assault crimes

The Justice Department has declined to charge the husband of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer in connection to sexual assault allegations against him by two agency female staffers.

One of the alleged incidents centers on the husband, Dr. Shawn DeRemer, seen on an office security camera giving a prolonged hug to one of the women in December at Labor Department headquarters in Washington, D.C., unnamed sources told the New York Post.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for Washington, D.C., declined to file charges after reviewing the video footage.

“Based upon the evidence presented to this office in relation to the video, there is no indication of a crime,” a spokesperson for U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said.

The Federal Protective Service, a part of the Department of Homeland Security that investigates crimes committed inside government buildings, also declined to pursue the case last month, according to the Post's sources.

The allegations were made amid a broader probe into an allegedly “hostile” work environment created by Chavez-DeRemer and her senior aides at the department's headquarters, in addition to other misconduct committed with her official duties.

Washington, D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department also investigated the matter and concluded its investigation, a representative said Saturday.

Shawn DeRemer was reportedly barred from the department's headquarters, but it was unclear as of Monday whether he has been allowed to return.

DeRemer’s lawyer, James Bell, has said his client “categorically, unequivocally, and emphatically denies each and every one of the allegations.”

The larger probes appears to center on a complaint filed with the DOL’s Office of Inspector General that alleged  Chavez-DeRemer had her chief of staff, Jihun Han, and deputy Rebecca Wright “make up” official trips for personal reasons.

Chavez-DeRemer also allegedly drank in her office during the workday and pursued an “inappropriate” relationship with a member of her security detail, according to the complaint.

It also was unclear as of Monday whether that any investigation into those allegations has ended along with the one of the secretary's husband. 

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley began an inquiry into Chavez-DeRemer's conduct after evidence was uncovered that she had taken subordinates to a strip club in her home state of Oregon while on a taxpayer-funded official trip.

The White House has continued to support Chavez-DeRemer, as press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that President Trump is “aware of the internal investigation” and “thinks that she’s doing a tremendous job at the Department of Labor on behalf of American workers.”