Dan Snyder Probe By Congress Could End in January, per Report

With Republicans projected to win majority in the House, the probe into the embattled owner reportedly could come to an end.

With Republicans projected to win majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, the House Committee for Oversight and Reform’s investigation into the Commanders and Dan Snyder could reportedly be coming to an end. 

According to The Washington Post‘s Mark Maske, Ranking Member James Comer (R., Ky.) released a statement via the Committee on the status of the probe once Republicans take over in January.

“It’s over,” Comer said, via Maske. 

Sports Illustrated has reached out to the Committee for comment but did not receive a response at the time this article was published.

This would end a more than year-long investigation by the committee into workplace misconduct and sexual harassment allegations within the Washington franchise. It was reported the committee, which has been led by Democrats, will release a final report or memo regarding the investigation’s findings, per Maske. 

The congressional committee’s investigation has centered around sexual misconduct and financial impropriety claims, beginning in October 2021, when committee chairwoman Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) demanded NFL commissioner Roger Goodell to turn over the findings from attorney Beth Wilkinson’s investigation. Wilkinson began her investigation into the Commanders in August 2020, and though it was completed 10 months later, the findings were never publically released. Washington was fined $10 million as a result of the Wilkinson probe.

The committee held a February hybrid roundtable where former employees discussed “workplace misconduct and the NFL’s failure to take steps to prevent sexual harassment and verbal abuse within the Washington Football Team under the leadership of owner Dan Snyder,” per an official release. A day after the roundtable, the committee raised concerns regarding various documents handed over by the NFL, including a Common Interest Agreement and an engagement letter.

Two weeks after the roundtable, the NFL retained former U.S. attorney and ex-Securities and Exchange Commission chair Mary Jo White to look into the latest allegations. The investigation is still ongoing, per a September article by the Associated Press.

The committee’s probe also involved a letter sent to the Federal Trade Commission claiming Washington and the embattled owner “may have engaged in a troubling, long-running, and potentially unlawful pattern of financial conduct that victimized thousands of team fans and the National Football League,” per a letter obtained by SI.  

Goodell and Snyder both testified in front of the committee.

If the committee’s probe does end, it isn’t the last investigation Snyder and the Commanders face. A separate investigation was launched by District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine, leading to a civil complaint being filed against the Commanders, Snyder, the league and Goodell. A criminal investigation into the franchise has also reportedly been initiated by the Eastern District of Virginia’s U.S. attorney’s office.

Dan and Tanya Snyder hired Bank of America on Nov. 2 to handle “potential transactions” of the team, a Commanders spokesperson said via The Washington Post‘s Nicki Jhabvala. This includes looking into all options like selling the team or just a minority stake. 

Commanders attorneys John Brownlee and Stuart Nash released a statement following Comer’s statement.

“We applaud Representative Comer for his leadership in putting an end to the investigation into a private company, which has been correctly characterized by sitting members of Congress as a ‘farce’ and ‘an abuse of power’ for its ‘reli[ance] on one-sided, unsupported claims,’” the statement reads. “The investigation, under the current leadership of the committee, has yet to interview any current Commanders’ employee, and has instead relied largely on a handful of witnesses who have been fired or otherwise left the organization under acrimonious circumstances. The Committee has selectively leaked witness testimony while burying evidence, such as Mr. Snyder’s own deposition, that refutes the Committee’s pre-conceived narrative.

“Over a year before the committee announced its investigation Dan and Tanya Snyder acknowledged the deficiencies in the Commanders work environment, apologized for them, and began implementing fundamental and comprehensive reforms to transform the workplace. Over the last two and a half years, the Commanders have transformed the workplace environment and have become a far more diverse and inclusive team, with women and people of color holding more than 40 percent of our senior leadership positions. The Congressional investigation has added nothing of value to this process and, indeed, the independent firm monitoring the improvements in the Commanders' workplace has singled out the investigation as an impediment to further progress. The team looks forward to continuing work to improve its organization while putting this issue behind them.”

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