Senate investigators released new documents on Tuesday detailing how a single, unverified tip led federal law enforcement to surveil a Texas Catholic school teacher for nearly two years in a probe related to January 6 that ultimately collapsed due to mistaken identity.
The files, released by Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) Chairman Rand Paul (R-KY), outline a 23-month investigation into Christine Crowder, the wife of a Federal Air Marshal. According to the committee, the FBI labeled Crowder a potential domestic terrorist and subjected her to physical surveillance and airport screening lists, despite early forensic evidence failing to place her inside the U.S. Capitol.
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The disclosure comes as part of Senator Paul’s broader inquiry into the alleged weaponization of federal watchlists, specifically focusing on the now-terminated “Quiet Skies” aviation security program.
“Weaponized Against Them”
According to the newly released records, the investigation began after a former friend submitted a tip alleging Crowder had been involved in the breach of the Capitol on January 6, 2021. Crowder had been in Washington, D.C., that day to attend the rally on the Ellipse but did not enter the Capitol building.
The documents indicate that early investigative steps—including facial recognition scans and geolocation data—returned negative results. Despite this lack of corroboration and the absence of any criminal history, the bureau proceeded with a full investigation. The committee’s report highlights that Crowder was placed on federal watchlists, her home was physically surveilled on at least four occasions, and she was tracked by Air Marshals while traveling.
“A free society cannot tolerate a system in which programs and authorities intended to keep the public safe are instead weaponized against them due to mere suspicion,” Chairman Paul said in a statement accompanying the release. “The records released today show how an unverified tip that the FBI failed to substantiate led to nearly two years of surveillance of an innocent American.”
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Internal Whistleblowing and Conflicting Evidence
The case gained initial public attention last year during a committee hearing on the Quiet Skies program. Mark Crowder, a Federal Air Marshal and Christine’s husband, testified as a whistleblower, revealing that his own colleagues had been ordered to track his wife’s movements minute-by-minute during family travel.
The files show that while the U.S. Attorney’s Office accepted the case for prosecution based on the initial tip, the FBI was unable to positively identify Crowder in footage from the Capitol breach. It was nearly two years into the probe—and over a month after a photo from a confidential human source confirmed the target was not Crowder—that the investigation was formally closed.
Shift in Federal Tone
The release of the documents was coordinated with current agency heads, marking a sharp pivot in how federal law enforcement is addressing holdover cases from the previous administration.
FBI Director Kash Patel, who cooperated with the committee’s request for records, characterized the Crowder case as a failure of focus.
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“When a Catholic kindergarten teacher from Texas can be surveilled for more than two years simply for being in Washington, D.C., without entering the Capitol, without committing a crime, we have crossed from legitimate investigation into political overreach,” Patel said.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem, who moved to end the Quiet Skies program in June, echoed those sentiments. She described the program as having been used as a “political rolodex” to target opponents while neglecting legitimate threats to aviation security.
“The Trump Administration is returning TSA to its true mission of being laser-focused on the safety and security of the traveling public,” Noem stated.
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