Top Democrats on the House and Senate Judiciary Committees have officially referred Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to the Department of Justice, alleging she committed perjury and lied to Congress during recent oversight hearings.
Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin and Representative Jamie Raskin sent a formal referral letter to Attorney General Pamela Bondi on March 16, 2026. The lawmakers claim Noem provided “demonstrably false statements” under oath during her appearances on March 3 and 4.
The referral focuses on four specific areas: the department’s compliance with court orders, the awarding of government contracts, the detention of American citizens, and the conditions within ICE facilities.
“Making false statements to Congress, and making false statements under oath, are federal crimes,” the lawmakers wrote. They cited 18 U.S.C. §1001 and §1621, which govern perjury and making false representations to legislative bodies.
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The letter highlights a sharp contradiction regarding a $220 million DHS advertising campaign. Noem testified that the President was aware of the campaign and that the contracts were subject to competitive bidding. However, the referral notes that the President told reporters he “never knew anything about it,” and procurement records allegedly show the contracts were awarded without full and open competition to firms with political ties to the Secretary.
Another point of contention involves the detention of U.S. citizens. While Noem testified that “we don’t detain American citizens,” the referral points to reports of at least 170 citizens being held during recent immigration enforcement operations, including specific cases in Illinois and California.
The lawmakers also challenged Noem’s assertions that DHS “always” complies with federal court orders. They cited a February 2026 ruling from a Minnesota judge who identified 210 instances of ICE violating court orders in a single district.
In their conclusion, Durbin and Raskin expressed skepticism regarding the likelihood of a prosecution under the current administration, citing what they termed the “partisan weaponization” of the DOJ. Nevertheless, they noted that the statute of limitations for these charges remains active for five years.
The Department of Justice has not yet issued a formal response to the referral.
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