Judge says evidence against James Comey must be excluded

Attorney General Pam Bondi has her work cut out for her in terms of meeting Trump’s expectations of prosecuting New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey.

Both cases were recently tossed due to the illegal appointment of a prosecutor.

Bondi tried to get a new indictment against James, but the grand jury denied it. Her only real option for the Comey case is to file an appeal because the statute of limitations has run out, but even that may not be an option after a recent ruling in the case.

The Indictment

Comey was indicted in late September, just days before the statute of limitations ran out on the case.

Bondi, at the time of the indictment, stated, “No one is above the law. Today’s indictment reflects this Department of Justice’s commitment to holding those who abuse positions of power accountable for misleading the American people. We will follow the facts in this case.”

FBI Director Kash Patel added, “Today, your FBI took another step in its promise of full accountability. For far too long, previous corrupt leadership and their enablers weaponized federal law enforcement, damaging once proud institutions and severely eroding public trust. Every day, we continue the fight to earn that trust back, and under my leadership, this FBI will confront the problem head-on.

“Nowhere was this politicization of law enforcement more blatant than during the Russiagate hoax, a disgraceful chapter in history we continue to investigate and expose. Everyone, especially those in positions of power, will be held to account - no matter their perch. No one is above the law.”

Indictment Tossed

Both Comey and James filed to have their cases dismissed on the basis that US Attorney Lindsey Halligan was appointed illegally.

The initial acting US attorney was Erik Seibert, who had declined to go for an indictment because he did not believe they had enough evidence to win the case.

Trump made it clear that he wanted Seibert out, and Seibert did resign his position. But Trump handpicked Halligan to replace him as the acting US attorney, but there was a problem. You cannot appoint an acting US attorney within 120 days of each other, and that window had not elapsed.

Illegal Appointment

This is one area where I feel Bondi has really dropped the ball, as this is a basic rule that she should have known about and warned Trump against.

Yes, they found someone to replace Seibert, but it doesn’t matter because the appointment itself was not legal.

U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie ruled, "Because Ms. Halligan had no lawful authority to present the indictment, I will grant Mr. Comey's motion and dismiss the indictment without prejudice.”

This gave Bondi two options if she wanted to pursue these cases.

The first was to appeal the ruling, but she was unlikely to win an appeal at any level. The second option would be to go for a new grand jury indictment with a new prosecutor.

Cannot Use Evidence

Bondi had already tried for a new indictment in the James case, and she was denied by the grand jury, likely doing her a favor. She was not going to win that case.

As we noted previously, the statute of limitations has run out against Comey, so filing for a new indictment is likely not an option. They could try, but they would likely lose, leaving her only the option to appeal.

That has just been dealt a blow as well, as a judge just ruled that evidence linked to a Comey ally has been ruled off limits. The ruling stated, "Upon consideration of Petitioner Daniel Richman’s Motion for Temporary Restraining Order, the relevant legal authority, and the entire present record, the Court concludes that Petitioner Richman is entitled to a narrow temporary restraining order to preserve the status quo while the Court evaluates his Motion for Return of Property and awaits full briefing and argument from the parties.”

I really wanted to see Comey face justice, but that does not appear as though it will happen now. With the lack of evidence, the illegal appointment, and the statute of limitations having run out, I don’t see any way that Bondi can overcome all this to get into the courtroom to prosecute Comey.