DOJ, Comey's lawyers face off in court over latest attempt to charge him

A federal judge in Washington heard arguments Friday over whether the Justice Department waited too long to pursue a third case against former FBI Director James Comey. Prosecutors accuse him of violating the Espionage Act by leaking national defense information tied to a 2016 New York Times story. Rather than seeking an indictment, they filed a criminal information, a document that skips grand jury approval, saying they needed it to beat a 10-year deadline that was about to lapse, according to CBS News.

Comey's attorney Ephraim McDowell told U. S. District Judge Trevor McFadden that the deadline had passed anyway, calling the government's reading of the statutes "gerrymandered." The defense says a five-year limit for one possible offense was missed, and that two U. S. attorneys' offices previously chose not to charge. Justice Department lawyer Dustin Farahnak responded that filing on October 5, the final day, froze the clock. He also said investigators have since found new evidence of further acts by Comey, though he gave no details.

McFadden questioned whether ruling now made sense, since an indictment could follow soon, and said the issues were novel.

Summarized by PolitiKool from CBS News’s reporting. Read the full story at CBS News →