President Donald Trump’s attempts to have the Department of Justice criminally indict his political foe, former FBI Director James Comey, has reportedly led to massive turnover of career prosecutors in a key U.S. attorney’s office in Virginia.
More than six prosecutors have been demoted or pushed out of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia as a result of the push to indict Comey; some have left voluntarily out of fear of working on cases that violate their principles, those familiar with the office told the Washington Post.
In April Comey was indicted for a second time by Trump’s Justice Department, this time on two counts including willfully making a threat to take the life of, and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States.
Trump, who promised to go after his enemies during his campaign, has pushed the Justice Department to indict Comey and other political figures he considers his enemies.
When the former U.S. Attorney, Erik Siebert, raised concerns about insufficient evidence to prosecute Comey, Trump fired him. The interim U.S. attorney, Lindsay Halligan, was ousted after a judge determined the administration had unlawfully appointed her. Top officials have also been fired along the way.
As a result, the U.S. attorney’s office has been understaffed, at least 10 current and former prosecutors told the newspaper.
The Independent has asked the Justice Department for comment.
Inner turmoil in the department began in September, when Trump fired Siebert for refusing to bring an indictment against Comey and another Trump enemy, New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Trump then appointed Halligan, a close ally with no prosecutorial experience, to the interim position. Although Halligan brought indictments against both of Trump’s foes, a judge determined she was unlawfully appointed – dismissing the cases.
A grand jury in North Carolina indicted Comey, again, in April – this time on charges of threatening the president through an Instagram post of some seashells arranged to spell out “86 47.”
Trump has heavily pushed the Justice Department to go after his opponents in any way they can, despite also accusing his predecessor of weaponizing the top law enforcement department.
His desire to go after his enemies became evident in September, when the president allegedly accidentally posted what may have been supposed to be a private message to former Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute Comey.
“We can’t delay any longer, it’s killing our reputation and credibility,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Just seven months later, the president would oust Bondi from her role.
Other oustings and demotions in the Eastern District of Virginia have occurred as well.
Siebert’s deputy, Maya Song, was fired in October. Brian Samuels, the former head of the criminal section, was demoted in December. Robert McBride, a career prosecutor, was fired in January after refusing to take the lead on the Comey case.
Trump’s feud with Comey is believed to stem from the fact that he oversaw the initial investigation into links between Trump associates and Russia. The president fired Comey as FBI director in 2017.
The Eastern District of Virginia is home to one of the most important federal court districts and U.S. Attorney’s offices in the country. Its location gives it jurisdiction over major cases related to the Pentagon, national security and the U.S. intelligence community.
One of the biggest cases the U.S. attorney’s office has been prosecuting was against an Afghan man accused of aiding a terrorist organization and planning a 2021 bombing at the Kabul airport, which killed 13 U.S. service members. But Michael Ben’Ary, the lead prosecutor who also ran the national security division in the Eastern District of Virginia, was fired after a conservative influencer accused him of resisting the Comey indictment.
Ultimately, a jury was deadlocked on whether to charge the Afghan man with playing a direct role in the deadly bombing.
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