Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) filed a civil complaint against former special counsel Jack Smith and the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. The lawsuit challenges the collection of her cell-phone toll records without her knowledge, alleging a violation of constitutional rights and questioning the legality of Smith's appointment.
"Through his Arctic Frost witch hunt that targeted conservatives across America and even the President of the United States, Jack Smith perpetrated one of the worst abuses of government power in our nation’s history. This lawsuit is solely about holding Mr. Smith accountable and ensuring that our nation’s justice system can never again be weaponized against the American people." Senator Marsha Blackburn, (R-TN)
Blackburn stated she first learned of the seizure on October 6, 2025, through congressional oversight disclosures. The subpoena, issued by a grand jury, dates to May 25, 2023, and specifically demanded her Verizon toll records. These records detail whom a person contacted, when the contact occurred, and its duration, though they did not seek the content of any conversations. The period covered by the subpoena included days around January 4–7, 2021.
Investigators issued this subpoena during "Arctic Frost," an FBI investigation that Smith’s office later took over. The probe examined President Donald Trump’s objections to the 2020 election and the events of January 6. According to the complaint, Smith’s office obtained a non-disclosure order that barred Verizon from notifying Senator Blackburn about the request for her records. The complaint further alleges that the application for this non-disclosure order omitted a critical fact: it never informed the presiding judge that the records belonged to a sitting U.S. senator.
Smith has previously addressed the use of such orders before Congress. He testified that he approved the subpoenas and understood that the non-disclosure orders meant the senators “didn’t have an opportunity to litigate the Speech or Debate concerns.” The complaint also highlights the timing of the subpoena, noting it landed just over a month after Blackburn publicly endorsed President Trump’s 2024 campaign in April 2023.
Blackburn’s lawsuit is based on four primary legal grounds. It contends that the seizure of her records violated the Speech or Debate Clause of the U.S. Constitution, which protects legislative communications from compelled disclosure. It also alleges violations of her First Amendment right of association, the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures, and 42 U.S.C. § 1985(3), a statute related to conspiracies to interfere with civil rights. The filing describes an internal warning within the Justice Department, alleging that the department’s Public Integrity Section had flagged D.C. Circuit precedent that treats the Speech or Debate Clause’s bar on compelled disclosure of legislative communications as absolute. Despite this, the complaint alleges Smith’s office proceeded after assessing its litigation risk as low.
Beyond the records seizure, Blackburn's complaint also challenges the constitutional legitimacy of Jack Smith's position. It states that then-Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed Smith in November 2022, but that then-President Joe Biden did not nominate him, and the Senate did not confirm him. On this basis, Blackburn asks the court to declare Smith’s appointment unlawful under the Constitution’s Appointments Clause, which outlines the process for appointing high-ranking officials.
The complaint describes a much wider investigative effort. It alleges that Smith’s office subpoenaed toll records belonging to at least 20 members of Congress, all identified as Republicans. Furthermore, it claims investigators sought expansive records involving approximately 400 Republican individuals and organizations. Public reporting and disclosures from the Senate Judiciary Committee have previously identified eight senators, including Blackburn, whose records were obtained by investigators. The complaint adds an allegation, made "on information and belief," that the investigation name “Arctic Frost,” described as a type of orange, “was chosen to mock President Trump’s complexion.”
Senator Blackburn articulated her objective in a public statement regarding the lawsuit. She seeks to hold Smith accountable for what she describes as a significant abuse of governmental power.
