Legal proceedings initiated by Donald Trump against James Comey and Letitia James have been dismissed by the court.
Judge Cameron Currie criticized Lindsey Halligan, an attorney selected by the former President, for engaging in what was described as “prosecutorial misconduct.” This development followed Halligan’s involvement in bringing charges against the ex-FBI director and the New York Attorney General.
According to the judge, Halligan, who previously served as a White House aide, lacked the requisite prosecutorial experience and was never properly qualified for the role.
The judge highlighted that the 120-day period for interim appointments had expired under the previous prosecutor’s term. Consequently, Pam Bondi, the former prosecutor, did not have the legal authority to appoint Halligan; this responsibility lay with the federal judges of the district.
In his ruling, Judge Currie, who was appointed by Bill Clinton, stated, “I conclude that all actions stemming from Ms. Halligan’s improper appointment, including the indictment of Mr. Comey, represent unlawful exertions of executive authority and must be invalidated.”
Both Comey and James sought to have their cases dismissed and called for the disqualification of the prosecutor due to the questionable nature of Halligan’s appointment.
The defendants in the two separate cases asked for the indictments to be dismissed with prejudice, which means the Justice Department would not be able to bring the same charges against them. But the judge dismissed with prejudice.
Comey was charged with making a false statement and obstruction of a congressional proceeding relating to his 2020 Senate testimony where he denied authorizing FBI officials to leak information to the press.
A judge threw out the case against James Comey
They pointed to grand jury errors from the charges secured by Lindsey Halligan
New York Attorney General Letitia James speaks during a press conference at the Office of the Attorney General in New York on February 16, 2024
James was indicted on charges including bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution concerning information on mortgage applications that prosecutors alleged was falsified.
Halligan, a former beauty queen, was named to the job of interim US Attorney for Virginia in September.
Before her appointment, Erik Siebert, a different interim attorney, was forced out amid pressure from Trump to file charges against his political enemies.
Comey’s lawyers argued that after Siebert was forced out, the judges should have had exclusive say over who would fill the vacancy.
But it was ultimately Trump who moved forward and nominated Halligan as he publicly pressed Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against Comey and James.
‘JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!’ Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time.
Comey was indicted days later on charges of making a false statement and obstructing Congress, and James was charged soon after that in a mortgage fraud investigation.
President Donald Trump speaks to members of the press before departing the White House on Marine One in Washington, D.C., on November 22
In a statement, James said, ‘I am heartened by today’s victory and grateful for the prayers and support I have received from around the country.’
‘I remain fearless in the face of these baseless charges as I continue fighting for New Yorkers every single day,’ the New York attorney general, a Democrat, said.
Judges have separately disqualified interim US attorneys in New Jersey, Los Angeles and Nevada, but have permitted cases brought under their watch to move forward.
But lawyers for Comey and James had argued that Currie’s ruling needed to go even further because Halligan was the sole signer of the indictments and the driving force behind them.
Comey has for years been one of Trump’s chief antagonists.
Appointed to the job in 2013 by President Barack Obama, Comey, at the time of Trump’s 2016 election, was overseeing an investigation into whether his presidential campaign had conspired with Russia to sway the outcome of the race.
Furious over that investigation, Trump fired Comey in May 2017 and the two officials have verbally sparred in the years since.
James has also been a frequent target of Trump’s ire, especially since she won a staggering judgment against him and the Trump Organization in a lawsuit alleging he defrauded banks by overstating the value of his real estate holdings on financial statements.
An appeals court overturned the fine, which had ballooned to more than $500 million with interest, but upheld a lower court’s finding that Trump had committed fraud.
