A federal judge grilled the Department of Justice during a hearing Wednesday about whether it mishandled the grand jury indictment against former FBI Director James Comey and asked if interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, who is leading the case, acted at the behest of President Donald Trump.
Judge Michael Nachmanoff found that Halligan signed a final indictment alleging two charges against Comey but that that document was never presented to the full grand jury, a revelation that could imperil the case if Nachmanoff decides it is enough to delegitimatize the indictment.
Nachmanoff directed Halligan, who had no prior prosecutorial experience before Trump installed her to lead the Eastern District of Virginia in September, to come to the stand. Halligan confirmed that she presented a prior indictment that showed three charges to the grand jury and that the jurors rejected one of the charges.
Tyler Lemons, the North Carolina-based federal prosecutor who argued on behalf of the DOJ, downplayed the issue. Lemons said the indictments were identical and that the second one was created as soon as the grand jury proceedings concluded and merely excised the one charge that the grand jury rejected.
Nachmanoff did not make any decisions about the validity of the indictment from the bench and instead ordered more briefing on the matter.
The hearing centered on Comey’s argument that his charges were vindictive and that the case should be tossed out entirely because of it. Comey was present in the courtroom while his lawyer Michael Dreeben argued on his behalf.
Nachmanoff, a Biden appointee, asked Dreeben if Halligan was a “puppet” or a “stalking horse” who was doing Trump’s bidding.
Dreeben responded that he would not use those words but that his team believed Halligan was operating at the direction of Trump, who had a years-long vendetta against Trump.
Meghan Tome contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
