US prosecutors bring third criminal case against James Comey
Former FBI Director James Comey has been charged with transmitting national defence information and conspiring to transmit it. The charges mark the third time the Justice Department has attempted to bring a criminal case against him since Donald Trump began his second term.
The latest charges were brought under seal earlier this month. Earlier cases accused Comey of making false statements to Congress and threatening Trump through an Instagram photo of seashells arranged as “86 47”; a judge dismissed the first case, while Comey has pleaded not guilty in the second. Comey says the cases are vindictive and selective prosecutions.
In short
- Comey faces new national defence information charges.
- It is the third charging attempt since Trump’s second term began.
- His first case was dismissed; he denies the second case’s allegations.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
Prosecutors can argue that alleged unauthorised transmission of national defence information is a serious matter that warrants investigation and, where evidence supports it, criminal charges, regardless of a defendant’s former office or political standing. Bringing a case is not itself proof of guilt, and the charges should be assessed through the ordinary legal process.
The case against
Comey and his supporters can argue that repeated attempts to prosecute a prominent former official, following a case already dismissed and amid his public conflict with Trump, raise legitimate concerns about selective or retaliatory enforcement. Even serious allegations should be pursued only on evidence and through processes insulated from political pressure, so the circumstances of this case merit close scrutiny.
Explained simply
James Comey led the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the US agency that investigates federal crimes and gathers intelligence, from 2013 until 2017. He later became a critic of Donald Trump, who was president during part of Comey’s time in office and returned to the presidency for a second term.
In the US, prosecutors bring criminal charges on behalf of the government, but a charge is an allegation, not proof of guilt. The Justice Department handles federal prosecutions, while judges and, where relevant, juries decide whether cases can proceed and whether a defendant is guilty.
The dispute matters because it involves the use of federal criminal law against a former senior law-enforcement official who has publicly opposed a sitting president. It also raises questions about how national defence information is protected and how prosecutors should be held to standards of fairness and consistency.
Read the full article at the source →
Originally published by Daily Mail as “James Comey charged for a third time”.