The Investigative Journal’s afternoon digest of primary-source developments from government, the courts and international affairs. Every item below is drawn from an official record linked in the text. Where a matter is pending, allegations are described as allegations.
Government
Justice Department sues California over its voter list
The Justice Department announced on October 15 that it has filed suit against the State of California, alleging the state is facilitating unlawful voting by noncitizens. According to the department’s press release, DOJ says more than 20,000 people who are likely noncitizens are registered to vote in the state. The release states that the figure rests on a comparison by the Department of Homeland Security and Homeland Security Investigations of publicly available California registration files against federal immigration data, which DHS describes as a preliminary analysis that is still ongoing.
The release attributes strong language to department officials. Attorney General Blanche is quoted as calling state-facilitated voter fraud “unacceptable,” and First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli said the department is “taking California to federal court” to protect citizens’ votes from dilution. DOJ also says California officials declined earlier requests to remove noncitizens from the rolls and to sequester ballots from suspected ineligible voters.
Several points remain open. The release does not name the specific statutes at issue in the text reviewed, and the complaint’s requested relief is contained in the filing itself. A preliminary data match is not an adjudicated finding that any individual voted unlawfully, and the case is pending. TIJ has not received a response from California officials; the state’s right of reply remains open.
White House sets a hearing schedule on Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook
A presidential memorandum dated October 7 establishes a committee of inquiry to determine whether there is cause to remove Federal Reserve Governor Lisa DeNell Cook. The memorandum states that Cook allegedly made false statements in connection with one or more mortgage instruments. It cites Article II of the Constitution and 12 U.S.C. 242, as construed in Trump v. Cook, 146 S. Ct. 2234 (2026), which the memorandum says defines “cause.”
The document lays out a process. The committee consists of the Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, the Chairman of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Director of the Office of Government Ethics. Cook may file a written statement at least three days before a closed but transcribed hearing at the White House on November 5, limited to four hours, and may file a post-hearing statement by November 10. The committee will then submit findings and a recommendation to the President.
The memorandum describes allegations, not findings. Cook’s response will be part of the record the committee is directed to consider, and TIJ will report on her filings when they are public.
Executive order defers diesel excise payments through year-end
Executive Order 14435, “Emergency Tax Relief on Diesel Fuel,” dated October 5, provides for deferral of diesel excise tax payments incurred from October 5 through December 31, 2026, for taxpayers the Treasury Secretary determines are affected. The order says deferred amounts would carry no penalties, interest or additions to tax to the extent the law allows, and it addresses relief from certain penalties for dyed diesel used on the highway during the same period.
The stated rationale is that restricted global diesel supply has raised prices, with farmers and truckers hit especially hard. The order directs Treasury to determine whether relief is authorized under 26 U.S.C. 7508A within five days, and to issue guidance on conditions and the deadline for paying postponed taxes, which the order itself does not specify. It also asks Treasury to explore forgiveness, including through legislation. Readers should watch for that Treasury guidance, since the practical reach of the relief depends on it.
DOJ and HHS-OIG align on health care fraud self-disclosure
On October 15, the Justice Department’s National Fraud Enforcement Division and HHS-OIG announced a coordinated self-disclosure policy. Under it, a company that reports potential criminal health care misconduct only to the Fraud Division’s Health Care Fraud Section can receive the benefits of both DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement Policy and the HHS-OIG Self-Disclosure Protocol. The release says companies that disclose only to HHS-OIG generally will not be treated as having made a voluntary self-disclosure to DOJ.
For compliance officers, the practical takeaway is the routing: criminal matters belong with DOJ. The department also says its Health Care Fraud Section has charged more than 6,200 defendants since 2007.
Three bills signed into law
The White House announced on October 15 that the President signed S. 240, which amends the Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act to give the tribe more flexibility on certain water projects; S. 283, which directs the Commerce Department to create a standard chemical-analysis method for determining the country of origin of seafood; and S. 2403, which amends ERISA to define adequate consideration for certain closely held stock. They are modest measures, but the seafood provision may matter to enforcement of import rules.
Courts
DOJ files suits against St. Paul and Portland over rules on federal officers
Also on October 15, the department announced complaints against the cities of St. Paul, Minnesota, and Portland, Oregon. DOJ argues that local measures restricting masks and prescribing how federal officers identify themselves are unconstitutional attempts to regulate federal law enforcement under the Supremacy Clause. The release cites St. Paul Code of Ordinances sections 268A-268B and Portland City Code sections 23.30.030 and 23.30.100.
The department lists comparable suits in New York, Virginia, Connecticut, New Jersey, California, Maryland, Philadelphia, Denver and Milwaukee. The cities have not, as far as TIJ’s review shows, filed responses. These are pending cases, and the cities’ arguments are not yet in the record.
Nineteen-year sentence in $1 billion Medicare fraud case
According to a DOJ release, Brett Blackman, 43, owner and CEO of HealthSplash, which acquired DMERx, was sentenced on October 14 to 19 years in prison. A jury convicted him in April 2026 after a 23-day trial of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud, conspiracy to pay and receive kickbacks, and conspiracy to defraud the United States.
The department says the platform generated orders for medically unnecessary orthotic braces signed by telemedicine doctors with little or no patient interaction, with more than $1 billion billed to federal health programs and more than $450 million paid. Restitution and forfeiture have not yet been set. Co-defendant Gary Cox received 15 years in December 2025.
Supreme Court: FCC v. Brown remains stayed
In No. 26A476, Chief Justice Roberts on October 8 stayed the October 7 judgment of the Fourth Circuit in Federal Communications Commission v. Sherrod Brown, et al., pending further order, and set a response deadline of October 10. The order does not describe the underlying dispute, and TIJ has found no later disposition in the sources reviewed. A ruling on the application could come at any time.
Two statements respecting denials of review
The Court’s October 13 and October 5 postings include statements by Justice Sotomayor. In Herrera-Salazar v. United States, joined by Justice Gorsuch, she agreed with denying review but flagged double jeopardy concerns about successive prosecutions under 8 U.S.C. 1326(a) for a continuing “found in” offense. In Mulkey v. Alabama, she agreed with denial because no objection was raised at trial, but cautioned judges against collateral proceedings, such as an arrest, in front of prospective jurors. Statements respecting denial are not holdings and do not bind lower courts.
International
Twenty-nine governments back UK attribution on RAF Fairford
A joint statement issued October 12, with the text mirrored by Iran Watch, acknowledges the United Kingdom’s attribution of Iranian involvement in a September 27 attempted attack at RAF Fairford. The statement says the UK concluded the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps remains willing to act abroad through covert networks and proxies. Signatories include the United States, Canada, Australia, and most European Union members.
The statement links the incident to a recent wave of attacks across Europe claimed by a group called HAYI, and commits signatories to identify, investigate, disrupt and prosecute hostile activity on behalf of Iran. This is a government attribution, not a court finding.
Secretary Rubio to travel to Central Asia and India
The State Department’s travel announcement says Secretary Rubio will travel from October 17 to 22 to Samarkand, Uzbekistan, for the C5+1 Ministerial with the five Central Asian states, leading a commercial delegation of more than 200 business leaders, and then to Mumbai and Jamnagar, India. The department says the India stops are aimed at the strategic partnership and energy cooperation, and this is his second official visit to India this year.
Other recent State Department statements
The department’s press release index lists, for October 13, statements titled “Nicaragua’s Denial of Agrément,” “Disrupting Cartel del Noreste’s Financial Network,” and “One-Year Anniversary of the Gaza Peace Summit,” along with readouts of Rubio’s calls with leaders of El Salvador and Ethiopia. TIJ was unable to retrieve the full text of these items and so does not characterize their contents beyond their titles.
Tomorrow’s Watch
Secretary Rubio departs on October 17 for Samarkand; watch for the C5+1 agenda and any energy or minerals announcements. The Supreme Court could act at any time on the FCC’s application in No. 26A476. Treasury’s guidance implementing the diesel excise relief under Executive Order 14435 is another document to monitor, as are California’s and the two cities’ responses to the DOJ complaints. Further out, the Cook hearing is set for November 5 with her statement due by November 10.
Right of reply: TIJ invites responses from any party named. Sources are linked above; email corrections to the editor.
— Eduardo Bacci, The Investigative Journal