Federal judge dismisses indictments against Letitia James and James Comey, saying Lindsey Halligan appointment was unlaw
Source: CNN
A federal judge dismissed the indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday.
The judge found that the appointment of interim US Attorney Lindsey Halligan in Alexandria, Virginia, was invalid.
Trump handpicked Halligan for the role amid increasing pressure to bring criminal cases against his political enemies, including Comey and James.
The Attorney Generals attempt to install Ms. Halligan as Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was invalid, Judge Cameron McGowan Currie wrote in her Monday order.
According to Currie, all actions flowing from Ms. Halligans defective appointment including the indictments against Comey and James were unlawful exercises of executive power and are hereby set aside.
The judge tossed out the cases without prejudice, leaving open the possibility that the cases against Comey and James can be brought again alleging the same conduct.
Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/24/politics/james-comey-letitia-james-indictments-dismissed?cid=ios_app
I just posted the updated CNN article
JoseBalow
(8,980 posts)Suck it, fascists! 
BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)CNBC just blared a breaking news!
LetMyPeopleVote
(173,120 posts)BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)(on my iphone, iPad, and now Apple Watch
)
CNN still hasn't sent a breaking through their app on this yet (they did the Mark Kelly one though).
thought crime
(1,030 posts)You're doing good work!
BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)LetMyPeopleVote
(173,120 posts)BREAKING: Comey case dismissed without prejudice. Halligan invalidly appointed, judge rules. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney.bsky.social) 2025-11-24T17:36:58.237Z

Nittersing
(7,949 posts)BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)Now let the cycle of appeals begin.
ananda
(34,077 posts)I mean, it looks quite obviously prejudicial to me.
BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)the 45 admin has been handling these U.S. Attorney appointments and there really hasn't been any SCOTUS precedent ruling for what should be considered a clearly illegal circumstance.
Hell - they have been trying to disqualify Jack Smith (not understanding the difference between "principal officers" and "inferior officers", where Garland appointed Smith as an "inferior officer", in contrast to what they have been doing - appointing new "Actings" when the temp's appointee's detail expires (in some cases, appointing someone who didn't even work in the office), and then lofting them into all the duties of a "principal" officer-equivalent of a U.S. Attorney. And worse, Bondi apparently "retroactively-approved" this mess and called it "done".
ananda
(34,077 posts)but rather whims of iron.
surfered
(10,471 posts)LetMyPeopleVote
(173,120 posts)This makes me smile
BREAKING: Judge dismisses cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James after finding prosecutor was unlawfully appointed.
— NBC News (@nbcnews.com) 2025-11-24T17:49:03Z
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/judge-dismisses-cases-james-comey-letitia-james-finding-prosecutor-was-rcna244775
"I agree with Mr. Comey that the Attorney Generals attempt to install Ms. Halligan as Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was invalid. And because Ms. Halligan had no lawful authority to present the indictment, I will grant Mr. Comeys motion and dismiss the indictment," U.S. District Judge Cameron Currie wrote in her ruling, finding the indictment should be tossed because the appointment of former Donald Trump personal lawyer Lindsey Halligan was invalid and she'd lacked the authority to present a case to a grand jury.
She issued a separate ruling dismissing the James case.
Because Halligan, who'd been appointed interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia at Trump's direction, was the only prosecutor to present the cases and sign the indictments, the indictments should be voided, the judge found.
The ruling could have major ramifications for other prosecutions brought by Halligans office during her tenure. A similar ruling disqualifying Alina Habba as the New Jersey U.S. Attorney has resulted in a number of criminal cases brought under her leadership being stuck in legal limbo while she appeals the decision.
Currie seemed largely skeptical of the Justice Department's position at a rare joint hearing on the issue with lawyers for Comey and James on Nov. 13, where a prosecutor portrayed questions about Halligan's appointment as "a paperwork error."
Response to LetMyPeopleVote (Original post)
ificandream This message was self-deleted by its author.
mcar
(45,530 posts)sinkingfeeling
(56,836 posts)FakeNoose
(39,628 posts)If they decide on a REDO ... they'll have to start all over with a new Grand Jury and get a new indictment.
Are they really going to do that again? Comey's lawyers have already seen how lame their "evidence" is.

Du916
(136 posts)Re-indictment is not possible because the statute of limitations has run. An appeal is low probability.
ProudMNDemocrat
(20,418 posts)Because even with a refiling, the case dismissal rings even louder.
This does not endear a "vote off confidence" on Pammy B's part. It does illustrate just how INCOMPETENT she is at her job and exposes her motives as purely "Political payback".
BumRushDaShow
(163,781 posts)bromeando
(150 posts)The DOJ has to be forced to follow the law.
RedWhiteBlueIsRacist
(1,562 posts)Grins
(9,127 posts)If there ever was a case FOR prejudice it was these two.
bluestarone
(20,864 posts)LetMyPeopleVote
(173,120 posts)The statute of limitations has run.
Link to tweet

Comey will still have to respond the upcoming appeal but he should get a final judgement at some point
Cha
(316,020 posts)IbogaProject
(5,459 posts)The Statue of Limitations ran out the day after that "inditement", so the only way the Fed Government can charge is if this rulling is overtunred, and then his other appeals come into play. In a way if Tangerine pushes them to try and appeal it will leave Halligan in a risky position as her specific actions submitted two inditements and questions if the second grand jury vote was based on the document filed. I think she commited actual fraud, I hope if that happened she ends up in Prison in 28 or 29.
LiberalLovinLug
(14,541 posts)It should have been With prejudice. James is not in the clear. They can keep harassing her with new threats now.
Coldwater
(682 posts)or did she have to do him a favor, or both?
