Justice Dept's Legal Gambit: Reviving High-Profile Cases Against James and Comey

The U.S. Justice Department plans to appeal rulings that dismissed criminal cases against New York AG Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. These cases were initially dropped due to allegedly improper appointments and lack of evidence, despite pressure from former President Trump.

The U.S. Justice Department announced plans to appeal recent court decisions that threw out criminal cases against New York Attorney General Letitia James and former FBI Director James Comey. This move follows a series of setbacks for the department, which had been seeking to prosecute these adversaries of former President Donald Trump.

U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie dismissed the cases last month, citing the unlawful appointment of prosecutor Lindsey Halligan, a Trump ally, as interim U.S. Attorney for Virginia's Eastern District. The Justice Department, pressured by Trump for retribution against his critics, is now appealing these dismissals while considering new indictments.

In James's case, grand juries rejected an indictment on mortgage-related charges, while a judge blocked key evidence in Comey's investigation. The appeal will question Halligan's appointment legality and aims to reinstate the dropped charges. Both James and Comey deny the charges, alleging political motives behind them.