Judge in Comey case blocks order mandating DOJ hand over grand jury evidence

Source: ABC News

November 17, 2025, 7:52 PM


The federal judge overseeing former FBI Director James Comey's criminal case on Monday granted a request from federal prosecutors to block a magistrate judge's order that mandated they hand over a trove of grand jury evidence to Comey's attorneys.

The Justice Department requested the stay earlier Monday after U.S. District Judge William Fitzpatrick ordered the Trump administration to turn over a full transcript and recording of the September grand jury presentation by Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, which he said included instances where she may have made "fundamental misstatements of the law that could compromise the integrity of the grand jury process."

Fitzpatrick expressed alarm at what he called "a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps" that may have irreversibly tainted the prosecution of James Comey and violated the former FBI director's constitutional rights, in a scathing opinion granting Comey's attorneys access to a vast trove of grand jury evidence. Fitzpatrick, in his ruling, wrote that, "The Court recognizes that the relief sought by the defense is rarely granted. 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."

In his order issuing the stay on Monday evening, U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff said he would give the government until 5 p.m. ET Wednesday to file objections to Judge Fitzpatrick's order, and set a 5 p.m. ET Friday deadline for Comey's attorneys to file a response.

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/judge-comey-case-raises-alarm-profound-investigative-missteps/story?id=127594703