US lawmakers refer Amazon to DOJ for obstruction of Congress News
Riekus / Pixabay
US lawmakers refer Amazon to DOJ for obstruction of Congress

A bipartisan group of US lawmakers Wednesday urged the Department of Justice (DOJ) to open an investigation into Amazon for obstruction of Congress.

In a 24-page letter, members of the House Subcommittee on Antitrust, Commercial, and Administrative Law called upon US Attorney General Merrick Garland to investigate allegations that Amazon officials deliberately misled the Judiciary Committee during an inquiry into the competitive practices of tech giants Amazon, Apple, Google and Facebook.

Last Congress, the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on the Judiciary (Committee) conducted an extensive investigation into competition in digital markets. During that investigation, and in follow-up inquiries, Amazon engaged in a pattern and practice of misleading conduct that suggests it was “acting with an improper purpose” “to influence, obstruct, or impede” the Committee’s investigation and inquiries.

Lawmakers particularly take issue with Amazon’s “use of third-party sellers’ data to advantage its private-label business and its preferencing of private-label products in search results.”

Amazon has previously faced accusations of deliberately misleading Congress. Amazon has consistently denied these claims.

THIS DAY @ LAW

Tojo and other Japanese WWII leaders executed for war crimes

On December 23, 1948, former Japanese premier Hideki Tojo and six other Japanese war leaders were executed for war crimes in Tokyo.

Learn more about the Tokyo War Crimes Trials.

Terry Nichols convicted for Oklahoma City bombing

On December 23, 1997, Terry Nichols was found guilty of conspiracy and involuntary manslaughter for assisting Timothy McVeigh in bombing the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. He was later sentenced to life in prison. On April 19, 1995, McVeigh detonated a truck bomb that gutted the building and killed 168 people, making it the deadliest terrorist attack on US. soil until the attacks of September 11, 2001. McVeigh was convicted for his role before Nichols on June 2, 1997. Learn more about the trials of Terry Nichols and Timothy McVeigh.