General Discussion

A remarkable ruling in James Comey’s case shows yet another way that the prosecution against the former FBI director could unravel — separate from the pending questions of whether Lindsey Halligan was lawfully appointed and whether the case she brought is unconstitutionally vindictive.

Ordering the rare disclosure of grand jury materials to the defense, U.S. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick concluded that the record in the case “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.”

Fitzpatrick’s 24-page opinion on Monday paints a damning picture on several fronts of the effort overseen by Halligan, the Trump-installed prosecutor who hadn’t previously prosecuted a case and brought this one over the objection of career prosecutors.

After reviewing the grand jury materials himself, Fitzpatrick wrote that Halligan appeared to make two “fundamental misstatements of the law that could compromise the integrity of the grand jury process.” The specific statements are redacted in the opinion, but the judge noted that they gave grand jurors the wrong impression about Comey’s legal rights......

Though the ruling doesn’t dismiss the case, it represents the latest serious cause for concern for Halligan — if, in fact, she wants this case to get to trial, where it would face its own problems of proving the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.