Court limits Justice Department access to U.S. Rep. Scott Perry's cell phone records

Mike Argento, York Daily Record
·2 min read
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The legal battle over U.S. Rep. Scott Perry’s cell phone records took a turn this week when an appeals court reversed a lower court ruling that granted the special prosecutor in the Jan. 6 case access to most of his records.

The ruling, considered a partial victory for the central Pennsylvania Republican congressman, sends the case back to the lower court to determine which records investigators can review.

U.S. Rep Scott Perry, R-York County, has sued the Justice Department to prevent investigators from examining his cell phone records related to the effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The FBI seized Perry's phone last August.
U.S. Rep Scott Perry, R-York County, has sued the Justice Department to prevent investigators from examining his cell phone records related to the effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The FBI seized Perry's phone last August.

The U.S. District Court in D.C. previously ordered Perry to turn over more than 2,000 records from his cell phone, seized under a search warrant executed by the FBI last year.

The Circuit Court of Appeals in D.C. this week appears to have blocked that order and has ordered the lower court to “apply the correct standard” to determine which of Perry’s texts can be reviewed, CNN reported. The appeals court ruling was sealed, but it is described on the court’s docket.

It’s not exactly clear what it means, though CNN did report that it was a disappointment to investigators looking into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and the actions by President Donald Trump and his allies to attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Investigators with Special Prosecutor Jack Smith’s office sought Perry’s text messages. Perry is believed to have played a key role in Trump’s efforts to reverse the election results.

Previously: U.S. Rep. Scott Perry says FBI agents seized his cellphone

The decision may impact the lawsuit brought by the York Daily Record and other media organizations – including The York Dispatch and PennLive – to obtain the FBI search warrant's contents once its contents are disclosed.

Grayson Clary, staff attorney for the Reporters’ Committee for Freedom of the Press, which is representing the media outlets, said that the ruling, which appears to take “a narrower view of what investigators can access” is still sealed, but that once it is unsealed, “any disclosures there will further undercut the Justice Department’s insistence on total secrecy in the suit seeking documents related to the seizure of Perry’s phone.”

More on the lawsuit: U.S. Rep. Scott Perry sues DOJ after it seized his cell phone

Perry’s legal battle with the Justice Department began shortly after the FBI seized his phone last August. He sued the department for the return of his phone and to prevent investigators from reviewing his texts and other communications.

Perry’s office did not respond to an email seeking comment. He had previously asserted that the seizure was politically motivated.

Columnist/reporter Mike Argento has been a York Daily Record staffer since 1982. Reach him at mike@ydr.com.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Court limits access to U.S. Rep. Scott Perry's cell phone records