DOJ files information to halt clock on Comey leak case
Prosecutors accused the former director of passing classified 2016 details to a New York Times reporter.
By Joseph Jenkins ·
The U.S. Justice Department filed a criminal information in Washington federal court on October 5 to stop the ten-year statute of limitations from expiring. The document was unsealed on Monday at the request of defense attorneys.
The filing accuses James Comey of transmitting and conspiring to transmit national defense information. It alleges he shared classified material with a New York Times reporter in October 2016.
Comey’s defense team is challenging the legal basis of the case. Patrick Fitzgerald, his attorney, stated that the document purports to charge Mr. Comey with crimes that he did not commit. The lawyers have asked a judge to dismiss the matter as legally improper.
This is the third federal case brought against the former FBI director. A judge dismissed the earlier charge regarding false statements to Congress. A separate case accusing Comey of threatening President Donald Trump in a social media post remains pending.
Comey addressed the news in an Instagram video posted on Monday. He said the Justice Department is back again and declared that he is still innocent. A Justice Department spokesperson called the statute of limitations freeze a widely recognized practice in federal court. The spokesperson noted that the matter is an ongoing criminal investigation.
Source: The Jerusalem Post
