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Wisconsin Watch partners with Gigafact to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. Read our methodology to learn how we check claims.

No.

A reference to the potential use of “deadly force” is part of standard policy for FBI agents issuing search warrants, not something that singled out former President Donald Trump in a 2022 search for classified documents at his Florida estate.

Justice Department policy restricts the use of deadly force. It states that agents “may use deadly force only when necessary, that is, when the officer has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to the officer or to another person.”

The same wording was used in the order to search Trump’s property.

The weaponized claim was made May 21, 2024, on social media by U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.

His office did not provide Wisconsin Watch evidence to support his claim.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in the case, which doesn’t have a trial date.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

U.S. Justice Department: 1-16.000 – Department of Justice Policy On Use Of Force

Trump case court document: Law Enforcement Operations Order

New York Times: Trump Falsely Claims Biden Administration Was ‘Locked & Loaded’ to Kill Him

Associated Press: Fact Focus: Trump distorts use of ‘deadly force’ language in FBI document for Mar-a-Lago search

Washington Post: How Trump used his own court filing to claim an ‘assassination’ attempt

X: Sen. Ron Johnson post

ABC News: Timeline: Special counsel’s investigation into Trump’s handling of classified documents

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Is a reference to ‘deadly force’ in an FBI Mar-a-Lago search memo evidence that Joe Biden weaponized the federal government?

by Tom Kertscher / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch
May 28, 2024

<h1>Is a reference to ‘deadly force’ in an FBI Mar-a-Lago search memo evidence that Joe Biden weaponized the federal government?</h1>
<p class="byline">by Tom Kertscher / Wisconsin Watch, Wisconsin Watch <br />May 28, 2024</p>

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<p><em><em><a href="https://www.wisconsinwatch.org/">Wisconsin Watch</a></em> partners with&nbsp;<a href="https://gigafact.org/">Gigafact</a>&nbsp;to produce fact briefs — bite-sized fact checks of trending claims. <a href="https://wisconsinwatch.org/2023/05/how-wisconsin-watch-checks-claims-for-its-gigafact-fact-briefs/">Read our methodology</a> to learn how we check claims.</em></p>
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<h2 class="wp-block-heading">No.</h2>
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<p>A reference to the potential use of “deadly force” is part of standard policy for FBI agents issuing search warrants, not something that singled out former President Donald Trump in a 2022 search for classified documents at his Florida estate.</p>
<p>Justice Department&nbsp;policy&nbsp;restricts the use of deadly force. It states that agents “may use deadly force only when necessary, that is, when the officer has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent danger of death or serious physical injury to the officer or to another person.”</p>
<p>The same wording was used in the&nbsp;order&nbsp;to search Trump’s property.</p>
<p>The weaponized claim was made May 21, 2024, on social&nbsp;media&nbsp;by U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis.</p>
<p>His office did not provide Wisconsin Watch evidence to support his claim.</p>
<p>Trump has pleaded not guilty to criminal charges in the case, which doesn’t have a trial date. </p>
<p><em>This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as <a href="https://x.com/SenRonJohnson/status/1793032095926767859" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">this one</a>.</em></p>
<p><strong>Sources</strong></p>
<p>U.S. Justice Department: <a href="https://archive.is/mHS9Q" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">1-16.000 - Department of Justice Policy On Use Of Force</a></p>
<p>Trump case court document: <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.flsd.648652/gov.uscourts.flsd.648652.566.3.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Law Enforcement Operations Order</a></p>
<p>New York Times: <a href="https://archive.is/EMLIe" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Trump Falsely Claims Biden Administration Was ‘Locked &amp; Loaded’ to Kill Him</a></p>
<p>Associated Press: <a href="https://archive.is/XkqwF#selection-3975.0-3975.95" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Fact Focus: Trump distorts use of ‘deadly force’ language in FBI document for Mar-a-Lago search</a></p>
<p>Washington Post: <a href="https://archive.is/Nitvr" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">How Trump used his own court filing to claim an ‘assassination’ attempt</a></p>
<p>X: <a href="https://x.com/SenRonJohnson/status/1793032095926767859" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sen. Ron Johnson post</a></p>
<p>ABC News: <a href="https://archive.is/epMsD" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Timeline: Special counsel's investigation into Trump's handling of classified documents</a></p>
</p></div>
<p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://wisconsinwatch.org/2024/05/trump-biden-fbi-deadly-force-mar-a-lago-justice/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://wisconsinwatch.org&quot;&gt;Wisconsin Watch&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/wisconsinwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/cropped-WCIJ_IconOnly_FullColor_RGB-1.png?fit=150%2C150&amp;amp;quality=100&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p>
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Is a reference to ‘deadly force’ in an FBI Mar-a-Lago search memo evidence that Joe Biden weaponized the federal government?

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