U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the dismissal via a post on social media platform X, stating that the action was taken under her direct instruction.
Dr. Moore and other defendants had been facing potentially severe penalties, up to 35 years in prison, on charges that included conspiracy to defraud the government and conspiracy related to the unlawful conversion and disposal of government property. These charges were originally filed during the administration of President Joe Biden.
"Dr. Moore gave his patients a choice when the federal government refused to do so," Bondi wrote in her post. "He did not deserve the years in prison he was facing. It ends today."
Felice John Viti, the acting U.S. attorney for Utah, formally filed the motion for dismissal on Saturday, citing that "such dismissal is in the interests of justice." The trial for Dr. Moore had just commenced on Monday in Salt Lake City with jury selection and was anticipated to last approximately 15 days.
Attempts to reach the U.S. Department of Justice, Viti's office in Salt Lake City, and Dr. Moore for comment by The Associated Press on Saturday were not immediately successful.
A federal grand jury had returned an indictment against Dr. Moore, his clinic—Plastic Surgery Institute of Utah Inc.—along with other associates and a neighbor, on January 11, 2023. The indictment specifically alleged the destruction of over $28,000 worth of government-supplied COVID-19 vaccine doses. Furthermore, they were accused of issuing fraudulent vaccination record cards for more than 1,900 doses in exchange for cash payments or donations to a designated charity. The government also claimed that some minors received saline injections, at their parents' request, under the belief they were receiving the actual vaccine.
Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr., a prominent figure in anti-vaccine advocacy before assuming his current federal role, had previously expressed support for Dr. Moore in April, commending him on X for his "courage and his commitment to healing!" During his January confirmation hearings, Kennedy notably declined to endorse the scientific consensus regarding childhood vaccines and their safety, as well as the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines.
In a subsequent X post on Saturday, Attorney General Bondi confirmed that Georgia Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene was instrumental in bringing the case to her attention.
