DiGenova's Wife Victoria Toensing Also Exits DOJ's Trump-Russia Probe as He Walks Back 'No Evidence' Comment

Since Joe diGenova's resignation from the DOJ's year-old "Grand Conspiracy" investigation was confirmed Thursday, September 10, the departure has widened. His wife, attorney Victoria Toensing, who joined him on the South Florida prosecution team, left the Justice Department on Friday, September 11, according to CBS News as reported by Fox News.

The dual exit leaves a leadership vacuum atop an investigation that has run for a year without producing a single charge.

DiGenova's contradictory quotes

DiGenova told the Associated Press it was "an honor and a privilege" to serve Trump and the department, and declined to detail why he left. But in a separate interview with the New York Post, he pushed back on criticism of his handling of the probe: "If you want indictments where there's no evidence, you have an ethical problem."

When the AP followed up, diGenova said the Post quote was taken out of context. "There's plenty of evidence in all of these cases to prove the theories of prosecution," he said. "It just takes time to get there, and some people want to get there a little faster than others — and you can't do that."

Fox News reported that diGenova had lost the confidence of both the Justice Department and the White House, and that he'd been effectively sidelined for months before formally stepping down. A person familiar with the matter told the AP the departure came amid frustration over the pace and management of the probe.

What the investigation was chasing

DiGenova took over the Fort Pierce, Florida-based probe in April after career prosecutor Maria Medetis Long was removed, according to Fox News and the AP. He had publicly said indictments could come within 30 days.

The investigation examines whether Obama- and Biden-era officials conspired to undermine Trump, spanning the 2017 intelligence assessment that Russia sought to help his 2016 campaign and the 2022 FBI search of Mar-a-Lago that recovered classified documents, according to the Epoch Times. Investigators recently sought interviews with former FBI agents who took part in that search and issued grand jury subpoenas to additional witnesses, CBS News reported.

Some Trump allies had hoped the probe would reach former special counsel Jack Smith, former CIA Director John Brennan, and former FBI Director James Comey, according to the Epoch Times. Comey has already been charged in two other cases brought by the administration.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan referred Brennan for potential criminal prosecution in October 2025, alleging Brennan "knowingly made false statements" in a May 2023 transcribed interview about the 2016 Russia assessment, per the Epoch Times.

Brennan's lawsuit and the dispute over motive

Brennan has denied wrongdoing. In July his lawyers sued the Justice Department, asking a court to force officials to preserve documents related to the investigation, according to the Epoch Times. The filing argued the department has conducted grand jury work but never indicted Brennan, and accused the administration of "a policy of using criminal process and prosecution to punish the President's perceived adversaries."

Trump allies see the probe differently: as long-overdue accountability for intelligence and law enforcement officials they believe targeted a sitting president without cause. DiGenova himself has spent years publicly arguing Trump was the victim of an intelligence community conspiracy, a position he held before and during his DOJ tenure.

Both claims are, for now, unresolved by any court or formal finding. No charges have been filed against Brennan, Comey's additional cases aside, or against Smith. No judge has ruled on whether the investigation amounts to retaliation, and Brennan's preservation lawsuit remains pending.

A Trump-appointed prosecutor who ran the probe for five months now says there's "plenty of evidence" but insufficient time. The target's lawyers call it a vindictive fishing expedition. Neither claim has been tested in court.

What's unresolved

The Justice Department has not named a successor to lead the Fort Pierce investigation, and it's unclear whether the grand jury subpoenas already issued will continue to be pursued under new leadership. Brennan's preservation lawsuit is still active in federal court. After a year and two departed lead prosecutors, the investigation that was supposed to prove a decade-long "deep state" conspiracy against Trump still hasn't produced an indictment against anyone.