Well, this just happened. The Justice Department’s cases against two of President Trump’s opponents collapsed under its own shaky foundation. A federal judge just tossed the criminal indictments against James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, finding that the prosecutor who pursued both cases was never legally authorized to do so.
Whoops … The decision instantly sent waves through the political and legal world since both Comey and Letitia James have long been lightning rods in modern American power struggles, not to mention gone toe to toe with President Trump before his latest occupation of the White House.
Check this part out. The ruling came from U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie, who agreed with Comey’s legal team that the prosecutor who brought the indictment, Lindsey Halligan, had no lawful authority to present any case to a grand jury. Currie laid it out plainly in her written order, stating that since Halligan was not legally appointed, every action she took from securing the indictment to signing it was an unlawful exercise of executive power. Currie described Halligan, a onetime White House aide and insurance lawyer, as someone with no prosecutorial experience who should never have been running a federal grand jury proceeding alone.
But wait, Currie issued a separate but similar order for Letitia James, striking down the indictment against the New York Attorney General. Her ruling called the situation unique and possibly unprecedented, since Halligan acted entirely on her own during the grand jury process, with no valid authority to prosecute anyone.
Here’s the bottom line.
The issue stems from Halligan’s appointment as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia at President Donald Trump’s direction. She was the sole prosecutor to present both cases and the only one to sign their indictments, which the judge found fatal since federal law places limits on interim appointments and requires Senate confirmation. The court determined that once the previous interim U.S. attorney was pushed out, it was for federal judges, not the Attorney General, to appoint the next one. Halligan’s placement in the role was therefore void, and so were the indictments she produced.
As you can imagine, Letitia James celebrated the ruling, saying she was grateful for the prayers and support from across the country and remains committed to fighting for New Yorkers every day. Her attorney, Abbe Lowell, echoed that sentiment and said the judge’s order confirmed what had been clear from the beginning. Lowell argued that the President replaced career prosecutors with an ally willing to bring charges others refused to pursue.
It’s not over. Reckoning coming?
Comey and James still have pending motions that argue the charges were politically driven and should be dismissed entirely so that prosecutors cannot revive them. The current dismissals were issued without prejudice, meaning new indictments could technically be brought again, though the judge’s findings create significant obstacles for any future attempt.
It gets better for holding the justice department accountable…
The court also signaled skepticism toward the Justice Department’s effort to defend Halligan’s appointment. At a rare joint hearing on Nov. 13, one prosecutor described the issue as a paperwork mistake, but Comey’s attorney argued it was a fatal flaw that undermined the entire case.
Comey had faced charges of making a false statement to Congress and obstructing a congressional investigation. Letitia James was charged with bank fraud and giving false information to a financial institution. Both pleaded not guilty. Reporting previously revealed that prosecutors inside Halligan’s office had advised against prosecuting either case due to a lack of evidence sufficient to win convictions.
Unpacking the deeper backstory.
Both of these polarizing figures have ties to long-running political tensions. Comey, the former FBI Director, has been a central figure in high-stakes federal investigations that have impacted the political landscape for years, not to mention that he investigated Hilary Clinton during the 2016 email scandal, at a time when people believed he should have waited until after the election. We know how that turned out.
As for Letitia James, she is New York’s top law enforcement officer and is known for high-profile legal battles that have often intersected with national political figures, including President Trump’s organization when he was not POTUS. She successfully delivered a civil judgment against the Trump Organization and held them accountable for rampant fraud.
The judge’s decision does more than clear the current cases. It raises questions about what other actions may be affected if handled under similarly flawed circumstances. For now, though, both Comey and Letitia James walk away with major legal wins, while the Justice Department must reassess the fallout of allowing an unlawfully appointed prosecutor to take the lead in two of the most politically charged cases in the country.