Nov. 19 (UPI) — The Justice Department has until 5 p.m. EST to submit a response to a federal judge in the case against former FBI Director James Comey regarding a potential indictment error.
Attorneys representing former FBI Director James Comey said there is no valid indictment against him after interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan testified in federal court and want the case dismissed.
The full grand jury that indicted Comey did not see the final indictment accusing him of lying to Congress, Halligan told U.S. District Court of Eastern Virginia Judge Michael Nachmanoff on Wednesday, ABC News reported.
She said the full grand jury did not see the final indictment that was signed by the grand jury’s foreperson after the grand jury had rejected one of the counts filed against Comey.
Instead of presenting the updated indictment to the full grand jury, Halligan said it was only shown to one grand juror and the foreperson.
Halligan took the stand on Wednesday to address issues raised by Comey’s defense team and judges involved in the case regarding its handling.
Her testimony suggests the grand jury did not approve all of the current charges against Comey, which could cause the case to collapse and end due to the five-year statute of limitations in the matter having expired.
Several federal judges aired their concerns about the case and the grand jury record regarding the matter, according to The Hill.
Nachmanoff on Wednesday repeatedly asked Assistant U.S. Attorney Tyler Lemons if the active indictment driving the case against Comey was seen only by part of the grand jury.
“Yes, that is my understanding,” Lemons answered.
Nachmanoff afterward asked Halligan about the apparent discrepancy, to which she said the grand jury foreperson and another grand juror were in the magistrate’s courtroom when the final transcript was presented.
One of Comey’s attorneys, Michael Dreeben, subsequently argued “no indictment was returned” by the grand jury and said the case against Comey should be dismissed.
Without a valid indictment, the five-year statute of limitations has expired in the matter, Dreeben argued.
Comey is accused of lying while testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Sept. 30, 2020, while it looked into the origins of the 2016 “Russian collusion” investigation that sought to tie President Donald Trump to Russian operatives during the 2016 election cycle.