Topline
A federal judge dropped criminal charges against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday, ending two of the Trump administration’s most high-profile prosecutions against the president’s political enemies as the court ruled that the prosecutor overseeing the case — U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan — was unlawfully appointed.
James Comey onstage at 92NY on May 30, 2023 in New York City.
Getty Images
Key Facts
U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie ordered the criminal charges against Comey and James to be dropped in two orders that were released simultaneously on Monday, after the judge had considered the two cases together.
Comey and James were indicted—for allegedly lying to Congress and mortgage fraud, respectively—by Halligan, who was appointed as U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia after the previous U.S. attorney Erik Siebert was ousted, reportedly for declining to prosecute the Trump enemies’ cases.
The defendants had argued their cases should be thrown out because Halligan was improperly appointed, alleging the Trump administration did not follow the proper protocols for appointing a new interim U.S. attorney and that under federal law, only district court judges could name Siebert’s replacement.
Currie agreed, ruling “Halligan had no lawful authority to present the indictment” against either Comey or James and that Attorney General Pam Bondi did not have the power to appoint Halligan after Siebert was fired.
Both cases were dismissed “without prejudice,” which means the government could still try again to bring the charges in the future—though the statute of limitations for Comey’s case may have already expired.
The Justice Department has not yet responded to a request for comment, while James said in a statement she was “heartened” by the court’s ruling and “remain[s] fearless in the face of these baseless charges.”
What To Watch For
The Trump administration is likely to appeal Currie’s orders dismissing the indictments, and it remains to be seen how future courts—including potentially the Supreme Court—could rule on the issue. The Justice Department could also try to either install a new U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia or get Senate confirmation for Halligan, which would make her appointment lawful, and try to indict Comey and James again. The statute of limitations in Comey’s case expired in September, however, so the DOJ could face issues should they try to bring new charges based on the same comments. Currie’s ruling does not impact a separate ongoing prosecution against John Bolton, another longtime Trump foe who was indicted by a different prosecutor in Maryland. That case remains pending.