Leo J. Terrell, tasked by the Trump administration with stamping out antisemitism at universities across the country, has been dubbed “the world’s largest Jew-hater” by former interns.
An exposé by The Harvard Crimson has revealed disturbing allegations against Terrell, chair of the Department of Justice’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism. Former interns allege that Terrell threatened them both physically and professionally, including threatening to choke one intern with a computer charger.
Tejas S. Billa, a former editor at The Harvard Crimson and an intern for Terrell’s task force, detailed multiple instances of alleged, heinous abuse. Billa and other former interns described Terrell as verbally abusive, alleging that he ridiculed interns over mistakes and purposely limited their interactions with other DOJ employees.
https://twitter.com/thecrimson/status/2115550341185880296?a=ZgpgqYBJmAO3P-5NMls&s=20
On Sept. 16, Billa alleged that Terrell accused him of lying after Billa told him he had left his computer charger at home. Terrell then allegedly threatened to choke Billa with the charger. Billa reportedly shared Terrell’s threat with a DOJ office manager, who indicated that the behavior had become a pattern.
Billa resigned nine days after the alleged confrontation.
In a statement to The Harvard Crimson, Terrell denied threatening to fire or choke Billa (though the Crimson did not print his full statement).
Billa, however, was not the only intern to make similar allegations. Three other interns spoke to the university newspaper, though all requested anonymity, citing concerns about their careers.
Terrell also faced allegations that he repeatedly looked an intern up and down, nicknamed her “Miss Cheerleader,” and threatened to “destroy” interns’ careers if they spoke out.
According to the interns’ accounts, Terrell allegedly isolated his team from other Department of Justice employees, ridiculed them and repeatedly threatened their professional futures.
The kicker? All the interns interviewed for the story, who had experienced the alleged harassment, were Jewish.
The accusations against Terrell extend beyond alleged mistreatment of his staff to questions about his performance at the DOJ and his ability to fulfill the task force’s mission. The report describes ambitious plans to combat antisemitism that largely failed to materialize.
Terrell allegedly envisioned a 15-city national tour to raise awareness about antisemitism ahead of the midterm elections. He reportedly discussed filling arenas and recruiting major celebrities, including Justin Bieber and Nicki Minaj.
But by the time of the article’s publication, the tour had held just one event: an Oct. 14 gathering at a synagogue in Southfield, Michigan. The investigation describes the project as emblematic of the gap between Terrell’s ambitious public promises and the team’s actual output.
Terrell, 71, was raised in Los Angeles and began his career in civil rights law after earning his Juris Doctor from UCLA. He has served on the Black-Korean Alliance, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Statewide Commission Against Hate Crimes. He is also a member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and has performed pro bono legal work for the organization.
Despite his career in civil rights advocacy, Terrell’s appointment to the DOJ was not without controversy.
In January 2025, Terrell was nominated to serve as senior counsel to the assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division. He announced plans to pursue legal action against universities accused of antisemitism, including UCLA and USC.
https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/1898891357738934327?a=y0-Q1oIIeEQCMINdfoM&s=20
Months later, the head of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs criticized Terrell for sharing content from the former leader of the white supremacist group Identity Evropa that mocked Jewish Sen. Chuck Schumer by suggesting President Donald Trump had revoked his “Jew card.”
In addition to the recent allegations of mistreatment, Terrell is accused of informally running the task force’s internship program, which allegedly began without a formal application process. The interns said they had no career attorneys supervising their work and that several students initially worked without pay under volunteer agreements.
By the time The Harvard Crimson published its report, Terrell said his staff had dwindled to one special assistant reassigned from elsewhere in the Justice Department.
The exposé sparks questions about whether a high-profile federal initiative created to address antisemitism at universities had the staffing and coordination necessary to carry out its mission…and whether Terrell was the right person to lead it.
Terrell has denied the allegations in a statement to The Harvard Crimson but has not otherwise addressed them publicly. The Justice Department’s press office has not responded to a request for comment from Los Angeles Magazine.
The post Trump’s Antisemitism Task Force Boss, Leo Terrell, Accused of Bullying and Threatening Jewish Interns appeared first on LAmag.
