By Steve Neavling
Former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James will ask a federal judge on Thursday to dismiss the criminal charges against them, arguing that President Trump’s hand-picked U.S. attorney who secured their indictments was unlawfully appointed.
The hearing in Alexandria, Va., marks the first time a judge will weigh one of several attempts the two have made to get the cases tossed before trial, Reuters reports.
At the center of the dispute is Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s former personal attorney, whom Attorney General Pam Bondi installed as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia in September. If Halligan is found to have been illegally appointed, the charges could be invalidated because she was the sole federal prosecutor who presented evidence to both grand juries. Comey has pleaded not guilty to making false statements and obstructing Congress, while James has pleaded not guilty to bank fraud and lying to a financial institution.
Halligan replaced Erik Siebert, who was pushed out after raising concerns about a lack of evidence to justify charging two of Trump’s most outspoken critics, each of whom oversaw investigations into him. Attorneys for Comey and James argue that federal law allows only one 120-day interim appointment and that repeated appointments circumvent Senate confirmation by letting a prosecutor serve indefinitely. Siebert had served his 120 days and was then appointed by the federal court in Virginia because the Senate had not yet acted.
Thursday’s arguments will be heard by Cameron McGowan Currie, a South Carolina federal judge appointed by President Bill Clinton, selected because Virginia’s federal judges played a role in Siebert’s appointment. The Justice Department maintains Halligan’s appointment was lawful, writing that nothing in the statute “explicitly or implicitly precludes the Attorney General from making additional appointments.” In late October, Bondi also gave Halligan a second title — “Special Attorney” — in an attempt to shore up the legitimacy of her role.
Outside legal experts warn the Justice Department’s maneuvers could backfire. Three federal judges in separate cases have already ruled that Bondi unlawfully appointed interim U.S. attorneys in New Jersey, Nevada, and Los Angeles. A 1986 Justice Department memo written by Samuel Alito, now a Supreme Court justice, also interprets the law the same way Comey and James do.
