Judge scolds Comey prosecutors, orders records to be produced

Prosecutors must provide a grand jury with records and evidence from the investigation into former FBI Director James Comey, a federal judge ordered Wednesday.

At Wednesday's hearing, U.S. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick ordered prosecutors to produce the information by the end of Thursday, The Associated Press reported. Fitzpatrick said his concern was that the Department of Justice (DOJ) chose to "indict first and investigate later."

Comey was present at the hearing but did not speak. When his lawyers told Fitzpatrick they had not seen the materials, the judge said, “We’re going to fix that, and we’re going to fix that today," according to the AP.

These materials include communications with Columbia University law professor Daniel Richman, a friend of Comey's and a special government employee at the FBI. Investigators seized these communications in 2019 and 2020.

Prosecutors claim Comey encouraged Richman to talk to reporters about FBI matters and that the former FBI director lied to Congress about allowing anyone to serve as an anonymous source.

Last month, Comey pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with testifying to a Senate committee in 2020. He is accused of falsely claiming during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee that he did not authorize a leak to news media about the FBI’s investigation into former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Trump-Russia probe.

After Comey requested to dismiss the case, the DOJ defended President Trump's social media posts that called for Comey to be prosecuted, claiming Monday it is not retribution. The ex-FBI chief's lawyers have argued otherwise.

“The President’s social-media posts are clear on why he thinks the defendant should be prosecuted: he thinks the defendant is ‘guilty as hell,’” prosecutors wrote in their latest motion.

Through a Truth Social post, Trump had called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to prosecute Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James and former national security advisor John Bolton. James and Bolton have, like Comey, since been indicted by the administration.

The ex-FBI chief's lawyers have argued that he is being targeted.

“For decades the DOJ has maintained the highest standard of ethics, following only the facts and the law to determine whether to bring criminal charges," Comey's attorneys wrote. "This case marks a sharp departure from that tradition."

The trial is scheduled to start on Jan. 5.