The federal government has tossed the sexual assault case against the husband of one of President Trump’s Cabinet secretaries—even as police say their investigation isn’t done.
At least two female Labor Department staffers accused Dr. Shawn DeRemer, the husband of Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, of unwanted sexual contact inside the agency’s Washington headquarters, including a Dec. 18 encounter that was captured on internal security cameras.
DeRemer told The Wall Street Journal he “categorically” denies the allegations and vowed to fight them.
The formal complaint was filed more than a month later, on Jan. 24, triggering parallel reviews by federal prosecutors and local law enforcement.
Federal prosecutors later reviewed the surveillance footage and declined to file charges, according to The New York Post.
A spokesperson for the D.C. U.S. Attorney’s Office, led by Jeanine Pirro, told the Post that “based upon the evidence presented… there is no indication of a crime.”
The Federal Protective Service, which investigates crimes inside federal buildings, also reviewed the matter and declined to pursue charges, the Post reported.
But the matter isn’t fully closed.
Washington, D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department confirmed it received a Jan. 24 complaint alleging a Dec. 18 sexual assault at the Labor Department’s Frances Perkins Building and said the case remains under active investigation by its sexual assault unit.
The complaint, obtained by Bloomberg Law, does not name the alleged victim.
MPD declined to identify any suspects when contacted by Bloomberg and did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
The federal charging decision does not bind local authorities, and police have not indicated when their investigation will conclude.
Following the allegations, DeRemer—an Oregon-based anesthesiologist who operates his own medical practice and does not work for the department—was barred from entering the Labor Department building.
The allegations were first reported by The New York Times and surfaced as Chavez-DeRemer faces a separate Inspector General investigation into alleged misconduct inside her office.
Investigators from the department’s Office of Inspector General searched the secretary’s office in late January as part of a broader workplace misconduct inquiry, and D.C. police later conducted a separate search tied to the criminal investigation.
Complaints have accused the secretary of fabricating official travel for personal reasons, pursuing a relationship with her bodyguard, and taking subordinates to a strip club during a taxpayer-funded trip to Oregon.
Her chief of staff, deputy chief of staff, and a member of her security detail have been placed on administrative leave as that inquiry continues.
The episode adds to turbulence inside a department already grappling with internal complaints and senior staff suspensions—marking one of the most serious controversies yet to engulf the Labor secretary’s office.
Despite the mounting scrutiny, the White House has publicly backed Chavez-DeRemer, with press secretary Karoline Leavitt previously saying the president believes she is doing “a tremendous job” leading the department.
Representatives for the Labor Department and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
