A committee in the U.S. House of Representatives has asked the Justice Department to consider criminal prosecution of a former Internal Revenue Service official for her role in last year's Tea Party scandal.
Investigators for the House Ways and Means committee say they uncovered evidence IRS official Lois Lerner may have violated the constitutional rights of conservative groups. They also say she may have misled law enforcement agents and acted recklessly with taxpayers' private information.
Lerner retired last year after the agency acknowledged agents improperly singled out the Tea Party and other conservative groups. The agents gave extra scrutiny to these targeted political groups when they applied for tax-exempt status from 2010 to 2012.
Lerner's lawyer maintains she has committed no crimes.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.
Investigators for the House Ways and Means committee say they uncovered evidence IRS official Lois Lerner may have violated the constitutional rights of conservative groups. They also say she may have misled law enforcement agents and acted recklessly with taxpayers' private information.
Lerner retired last year after the agency acknowledged agents improperly singled out the Tea Party and other conservative groups. The agents gave extra scrutiny to these targeted political groups when they applied for tax-exempt status from 2010 to 2012.
Lerner's lawyer maintains she has committed no crimes.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and Reuters.