Elizabeth G. Oyer says she was fired from the Justice Department after failing to grant a favor to the Trump-supporting celebrity, who was named a “special ambassador” to Hollywood
A Justice Department pardon attorney was dismissed last week, and she believes it may be linked to Mel Gibson.
Elizabeth G. Oyer informed The New York Times that she and several colleagues were let go from their federal positions on Friday, March 7. Her termination followed a disagreement regarding the reinstatement of Gibson’s gun ownership rights, which were revoked after his 2011 misdemeanor domestic violence conviction.
Two weeks earlier, Oyer had joined a team of federal employees tasked with restoring gun rights to certain individuals with criminal convictions. She found this request unusual, as the Justice Department rarely exercises its authority to restore gun ownership rights.
Despite this, Oyer’s team compiled a list of 95 candidates, which was narrowed down to nine by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s office. Oyer was then asked to draft a memo recommending the restoration of gun rights for those nine individuals, plus one additional person.
“They returned it to me with a request to include Mel Gibson in the memo,” she stated.
In January, Gibson’s attorney approached Justice Department officials to seek the restoration of his gun rights, shortly after President Donald Trump appointed the Braveheart actor, along with conservative figures Jon Voight and Sylvester Stallone, as “special ambassadors” to Hollywood.
“They will serve as Special Envoys to me for the purpose of bringing Hollywood, which has lost much business over the last four years to Foreign Countries, BACK — BIGGER, BETTER. AND STRONGER THAN EVER BEFORE!” Trump wrote on TruthSocial before his inauguration on January 20. “It will again be, like The United States of America itself, The Golden Age of Hollywood!”
Despite the president’s unexpected backing for Gibson, Oyer opposed the reinstatement of the actor and director’s gun rights. Citing insufficient time to evaluate Gibson and the seriousness of his offense, the attorney remarked that restoring his gun rights “is a serious matter that, in my view, is not something that I could recommend lightly.”
Oyer emphasized to the Times, “There are real consequences that arise when individuals with a history of domestic violence possess firearms. This isn’t about politics — it’s a matter of safety.”
In March 2011, Gibson entered a no contest plea to a misdemeanor battery charge stemming from a January 2010 incident involving his then-girlfriend, Oksana Grigorieva. Grigorieva accused the actor of verbally abusing her and physically assaulting her and their daughter, Lucia. She later released audio recordings that she claimed demonstrated Gibson’s verbal mistreatment.
The Mad Max actor stated that the recordings were manipulated, but he later acknowledged that he did strike Grigorieva. He insisted, however, that it was solely to prevent her from causing harm to their daughter.
You need to understand the context of being in a heated and irrational discussion during a breakdown, while trying to escape a toxic relationship, he stated in an April 2011 interview with Deadline. “It was just one terrible moment, directed at one individual, within a single day, and it doesn’t reflect my true beliefs or how I’ve treated others throughout my life.”
After Oyer initially declined to reinstate Gibson’s gun rights, a senior official from the Justice Department contacted her, reportedly taking a different stance.
“He basically told me that Mel Gibson has a personal connection with President Trump, and that should be enough reason for me to make a recommendation, suggesting it would be wise to do so,” she asserted.
Gibson is connected to at least one other member of the Trump administration. On Saturday, March 8, he was seen at UFC 313 in Las Vegas, alongside the newly appointed FBI Director Kash Patel.
The senior DOJ official’s tone, Oyer recognized, seemed to shift from a request to a demand.
Oyer expressed, “I truly didn’t sleep at all that night,” as she realized that her situation forced her to either compromise her deeply held beliefs and ethics or risk losing her chance to engage in future discussions.
She recalled confiding in a colleague about her concerns for her career while contemplating her choice, reportedly stating, “I can’t believe this, but I genuinely think Mel Gibson is going to be my undoing.”
Both The Times and NBC News reached out to a Justice Department official who claimed that Oyer’s dismissal was unrelated to the Gibson matter.
An unnamed official informed NBC, “The decision regarding Mel Gibson had no impact on the termination. The paperwork was completed before the Mel Gibson email was sent.”
Another DOJ official told NBC that while they did not know the exact reasons for Oyer’s termination, it aligns with “a troubling pattern of personnel changes within the federal government and at DOJ.”
“I can’t say how much of what happened to Liz was due to not conforming to a specific issue,” the second official remarked. “However, the political leadership in this administration is systematically dismantling the institutional safeguards.”
In her statement to NBC regarding the situation, Oyer noted, “Sadly, seasoned professionals across the Department are hesitant to express their views because dissent is being met with repercussions.”
“Decisions are being made based on personal connections and loyalty rather than facts, expertise, or sound analysis, which is extremely concerning given the implications for public safety,” she added.