Judge ruled DoJ engaged in ‘profound investigative missteps’ on way to indicting the former FBI director
Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick ruled on Monday that the justice department engaged in a “disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps” on its way to indicting Comey. The federal judge directed prosecutors to produce to defense lawyers all grand jury materials from the case.
Fitzpatrick wrote that problems include “fundamental misstatements of the law” by a prosecutor to a grand jury that indicted Comey in September, the use of potentially privileged communications in the investigation and unexplained irregularities in the transcript of the grand jury proceedings.
“The Court recognizes that the relief sought by the defense is rarely granted,” Fitzpatrick wrote, adding: “However, the record points to a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps, missteps that led an FBI agent and a prosecutor to potentially undermine the integrity of the grand jury proceeding.”
Considering that, apparently, Halligan told the grand jury that there would be more evidence next week and to indict on that.
I get the need for secrecy here, but seriously, we need someone in the room keeping not-legally-appointed prosecutors from just straight up abusing the trust they’ve been given.
Are judges not involved in the grand jury process at all?
Nope. It’s a prosecutor’s wet dream. I’ve been inside of one, and the only folks in there are the grand jury members, the prosecutor (and any of his staff needed), and whoever they call to testify. Usually one of the grand jury members took notes for the proceedings where I was, but perhaps in a more populated area they have a court stenographer for it, seeing as this grand jury seems to have pretty detailed recordings.
That’s wild
Apparently not. I found that out yesterday, lol.