Ty Cobb: DOJ Comey case ‘dead’

Former White House lawyer Ty Cobb on Monday said the Justice Department’s (DOJ) case against former FBI Director James Comey is “dead” due to missteps made by Lindsey Halligan, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, throughout the indictment. 

“I think it’s dead for two reasons,“ Cobb said in an appearance on CNN. “First, I think it’s because of the illegal appointment that is before another judge, Judge Curry. But Magistrate Judge [William] Fitzpatrick’s opinion today will be taught in law schools for 50 years as the epitome of prosecutorial misconduct.“

Fitzpatrick raised concerns with both the evidence presented by the prosecution and concerns about the DOJ’s attempt to undertake retribution efforts on behalf of President Trump. 

“Having been requested by the government to review grand jury materials, the Court has identified two statements by the prosecutor to the grand jurors that on their face appear to be fundamental misstatements on the law that could compromise the integrity of the grand jury process,” Fitzpatrick wrote in his 24-page ruling. 

“Both statements by the prosecutor are in response to questions by grand jurors and are directly related to communications involving Comey,” he added. 

Cobb told CNN’s “Erin Burnett OutFront“ that Halligan was to blame “in large part” for the errors. 

“Her time in the grand jury is extraordinary. She told the grand jury, basically, that Comey didn’t have a Fifth Amendment right at trial to refuse to testify,” he told host Erin Burnett. “And therefore, he would be able to give his explanation as to the events and counter the government’s evidence, which the judge noted appropriately was burden shifting.”

“And moreover, she told the grand jury in an extraordinary statement not to worry about the record with which they had been presented because the government had better evidence at trial,” he continued. “That’s like saying, ‘Please indict this person because we don’t have time to indict innocent people.’ It’s just way, way, way out of bounds.”

The former special counsel also noted that missteps could be a “basis” for both Halligan and Attorney General Pam Bondi to be disbarred. 

A federal grand jury indicted Comey in September on charges of making a false statement and obstruction of a congressional proceeding in connection with testimony he gave before the Senate in 2020 related to the FBI’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. He pleaded not guilty last month.

The former FBI chief has maintained that plea of innocence and said he looks forward to defending himself at trial if that’s what it comes to.

“My family and I have known for years there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump. But we couldn’t imagine ourselves living any other way,” Comey said in a video previously posted to Instagram. “We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn’t either.”

“Somebody that I love dearly recently said that fear is the tool of a tyrant. And she’s right,” he continued, quoting what his daughter Maurene Comey said after she was fired as a federal prosecutor in July.

“But I’m not afraid, and I hope you’re not either. I hope instead you are engaged. You are paying attention, and you will vote like your beloved country depends upon it, which it does,” Comey added.