PANews reported on August 3rd that, according to CCTV News, the Office of Special Counsel, a US federal watchdog, confirmed on August 2nd local time that former Special Counsel Jack Smith, who oversaw the Trump case, is under investigation for "alleged illegal political activities." Smith was appointed Special Counsel in November 2022 to investigate and prosecute Trump's alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and the mishandling of confidential government documents. Trump was criminally charged in both cases. After the 2024 presidential election results were released, Smith filed documents in a US federal court dropping the charges against Trump. In the documents, he stated that the US Constitution stipulates that criminal proceedings against the president-elect should be terminated before the inauguration of the president-elect. The Department of Justice decided to drop the proceedings based on this provision. Smith resigned from the US Department of Justice on January 10th of this year.