The home where a boy was killed and a woman critically injured after they were stabbed by a man who targeted them because they were Muslim is shown in Plainfield, Ill., Sunday, Oct. 15, 2023. (Anthony Vazquez/Chicago Sun-Times via AP)

The Justice Department on Sunday announced it has opened a federal hate crimes investigation into the fatal stabbing, after 71-year-old Joseph Czuba allegedly stabbed Wadea Al-Fayoume, 6, and his mother, 32-year-old Hanaan Shahin, in a Plainfield Township home.

Attorney General Merrick Garland, accompanied by Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, left, speaks during a news conference, Tuesday, March 7, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo / Alex Brandon)

The Justice Department said the tie-up would especially hurt cost-conscious travelers who depend on Spirit to find cheaper options to JetBlue and other airlines.

FILE - President Joe Biden responds to questions from reporters after speaking about the economy in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House Campus, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023, in Washington. (AP Photo / Andrew Harnik, File)

The apparent mishandling of classified documents and official records from the Obama administration is under investigation by a former U.S. attorney, Robert Hur, who was appointed as a special counsel by Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023, in Washington, as John Lausch, the U.S. Attorney in Chicago, looks on. (AP Photo / Manuel Balce Ceneta)

The announcement followed Biden's acknowledgement Thursday morning that a document with classified markings from his time as vice president was found in his personal library, along with other documents found in his garage.

Jack Smith, then the Department of Justice’s chief of the Public Integrity Section, poses for photo at the Department of Justice in Washington, on Aug. 24, 2010. (AP Photo / Charles Dharapak, File)

The move, announced just three days after Donald Trump formally launched his 2024 candidacy, is a recognition of the unmistakable political implications of two investigations that involve not only a former president but also a current White House hopeful.

President Joe Biden signs the Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 in the State Dining Room at the White House in Washington, April 6, 2022. Watching from left are Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of Calif., Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., Annette Taylor, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., and Rep. Brenda Lawrence, D-Mich. (A

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi received a positive test result for COVID-19 and is currently asymptomatic, her spokesman Drew Hammill said Thursday in a tweet. He said she had tested negative earlier in the week.

(WTTW News)

“Many of these guns have been linked to shootings in the Chicago area in which multiple people have been injured and several killed,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said Friday.

Supplies are shown on a desk at Safer Inside, a realistic model of a safe injection site in San Francisco, Aug. 29, 2018. (AP Photo / Eric Risberg, File)
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A year after winning a major court battle against the opening of so-called safe injection sites — safe havens for people to use heroin and other narcotics with protections against fatal overdoses — the Justice Department is signaling it might be open to allowing them.

In this Aug. 25, 2021 file photo, people hold signs and chant during a meeting of the North Allegheny School District school board regarding the district's mask policy, at at North Allegheny Senior High School in McCandless, Pa. (Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP, File)
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Attorney General Merrick Garland directed authorities to hold strategy sessions with law enforcement to address the increasing threats targeting school board members, teachers and other employees in the nation’s public schools.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland toured Chicago Thursday visiting a local police precinct and church and meeting with Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Police Superintendent David Brown, July 22, 2021. (WTTW News)
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The U.S. attorney general targets illegal guns. City Council approves civilian police oversight as shootings soar. Lollapalooza goes on despite rising COVID-19 cases. Gov. Pritzker makes it official.

In this June 25, 2021 file photo, Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington. (AP Photo / Patrick Semansky, File)

The Justice Department is launching an effort in Chicago and four other U.S. cities to reduce spiking gun violence by addressing illegal trafficking and prosecuting offenses that help put guns in the hands of criminals.

President Joe Biden’s pick for attorney general Merrick Garland, addresses staff on his first day at the Department of Justice, Thursday, March 11, 2021, in Washington. (Kevin Dietsch / Pool via AP)
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Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday ordered a review of how the Justice Department can best deploy its resources to combat hate crimes during a surge in incidents targeting Asian Americans.

Judge Merrick Garland, President Joe Biden's pick to be attorney general, answers questions from Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., as he appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee for his confirmation hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Feb. 22, 2021. (AP Photo / J. Scott Applewhite)

The Senate confirmed Merrick Garland on Wednesday to be the next U.S. attorney general with a strong bipartisan vote, placing the widely-respected, veteran judge in the post as President Joe Biden has vowed to restore the Justice Department's reputation for independence.

Judge Merrick Garland, nominee to be attorney general, testifies at his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Monday, Feb. 22, 2021 on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Demetrius Freeman / The Washington Post via AP, Pool)

Merrick Garland, President Joe Biden’s attorney general nominee, vowed Monday to prioritize combating extremist violence and said his first focus would be on the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol as he sought to assure lawmakers that the Justice Department would remain politically independent on his watch.

In this July 22, 2019, file photo, Merrick Garland pays his respects for the late Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens in the Great Hall of the Supreme Court in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File)

In picking Garland, President-elect Joe Biden is turning to an experienced judge who held senior positions at the Justice Department decades ago, including as a supervisor of the prosecution of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.

Merrick Garland (Courtesy of White House)

What's it like to work with Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland? We speak with one of his former law clerks about what it's like to work with the judge.