On Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2026, a federal grand jury in Washington declined to indict Cassidy Hutchinson, the former Trump White House aide whose 2022 testimony to the House Jan. 6 committee made her one of its best-known witnesses. That account comes from NBC News, citing a senior U.S. official, and from CBS News, citing four sources briefed on the proceedings. The Washington Post first reported it, and The Associated Press confirmed it through two people familiar with the matter.
Grand jury proceedings are secret, and none of these outlets named an on-the-record source. The questions below cover what has been reported, who reported it and what is still unknown.
Was Cassidy Hutchinson charged with a crime?
No. NBC News reported that the grand jury returned a “no bill,” meaning it rejected the Justice Department’s request for an indictment. NBC said Hutchinson’s name was not mentioned in the courtroom when the no bill was announced, and that a senior U.S. official confirmed the case was hers.
According to CBS News, a Justice Department Civil Rights Division litigator, Neville Hedley, told U.S. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui during an unrelated hearing on Tuesday that the grand jury had not concurred on a proposed indictment. Hedley did not name the defendant, and CBS said multiple sources confirmed the case was Hutchinson’s.
What were prosecutors investigating?
The investigation centered on Hutchinson’s 2022 testimony about President Donald Trump’s actions around the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, NBC News and CBS News reported. The Post reported that prosecutors were seeking to charge her over the account she gave lawmakers. CBS said it could not determine exactly which parts of her testimony prosecutors were examining. NBC News said a grand jury heard evidence in the case in early October.
Both NBC and CBS reported that the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division handled the case. NBC noted that the division is headed by Trump appointee Harmeet Dhillon.
What did she tell the Jan. 6 committee?
Hutchinson was a senior aide to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, according to NBC and CBS. CBS reported that she testified that Trump and Meadows were warned on Jan. 6 that some supporters were carrying weapons, and that Trump wanted the magnetometers removed at the Ellipse rally where he spoke that morning.
Her most disputed account was secondhand. CBS reported that Hutchinson relayed a story she said came from then-deputy chief of staff Tony Ornato, in which Trump lunged at the steering wheel of the presidential vehicle when his lead Secret Service agent refused to drive him to the Capitol. NBC reported that Secret Service officials denied that account. CBS reported that Trump’s driver later said in sworn testimony that the president never tried to grab the wheel. NBC reported that Hutchinson has maintained her testimony was truthful.
How did the case reach the Justice Department?
CBS reported that, according to media accounts, House Republican allies of the president referred Hutchinson to the Justice Department. NBC reported that in March, Trump posted a link to a Breitbart article about House Republicans’ referral. NBC also reported that Trump has called Hutchinson a “scam artist” who lied under oath and has suggested she be prosecuted.
Have other grand juries refused similar cases?
Yes, according to the coverage. The AP described Tuesday’s result as the latest setback for the Justice Department in its efforts to persuade grand juries. NBC News reported that after a case against New York Attorney General Letitia James was dismissed on technical grounds, three later attempts to re-indict her were turned down. NBC also reported that the administration failed to indict six Democratic members of Congress over a video about unlawful military orders.
NBC reported that the rise in rejections led Washington’s chief federal judge to adopt a policy this year requiring prosecutors to notify the duty magistrate judge when a grand jury declines to indict.
Can prosecutors try again?
Yes. NBC News reported that the no bill does not bar the Justice Department from seeking charges against Hutchinson again. As of the reports Tuesday night, the Justice Department had not responded to requests for comment, according to NBC and CBS. NBC said Hutchinson’s attorneys had not immediately responded either.
Our take: what is confirmed and what is not
Because the case played out in secret grand jury proceedings, much of the story rests on anonymous sourcing. To help readers sort through the reporting, we put together this checklist:
| Question | Status as of Oct. 28 | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Did a grand jury decline to indict Hutchinson? | Reported by four major outlets | NBC, CBS, The Washington Post and AP, all citing unnamed sources |
| Which statements were targeted? | Not publicly known | CBS said it could not determine this |
| Proposed charge(s) | Not publicly disclosed | No outlet we reviewed named a specific statute |
| Will DOJ seek charges again? | Unknown | A no bill does not bar a new attempt, per NBC |
| Comment from DOJ or Hutchinson’s lawyers | None as of Tuesday night | NBC; CBS |
Our read: a no bill is not an acquittal, and it is not a finding about whether her 2022 testimony was accurate. It means only that grand jurors did not vote to approve the proposed indictment. Readers should look for an official statement from the Justice Department or Hutchinson’s attorneys, or a court filing, before treating any claim about a new indictment as settled.
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Updated October 28, 2026