A federal judge has demanded an explanation from prosecutor Lindsey Halligan for continuing to use the title of U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia despite another judge's ruling that she was unlawfully occupying the role.
District Judge David Novak, appointed by President Donald Trump, issued a three-page order Tuesday giving Halligan seven days to explain herself, given that District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie had found in November that the Department of Justice had violated the Constitution by appointing her as a second successive interim hire.
Currie’s finding led to the dismissal of criminal cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, two long-standing enemies of the president.
Novak wrote to Halligan asking to hear “the basis for... [the] identification of herself as the United States Attorney, notwithstanding Judge Currie’s contrary ruling. She shall also set forth the reasons why this court should not strike Ms Halligan’s identification of herself as United States Attorney from the indictment in this matter.”
The justice added that Halligan “shall further explain why her identification does not constitute a false or misleading statement.”
Novak further acknowledged that the DOJ was appealing Currie’s disqualification ruling, but that her order had not been paused pending the appeal. “Consequently it remains the binding precedent in this district and is not subject to being ignored,” he concluded.
The Independent has contacted the White House and the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia for comment.
Currie’s November ruling found her agreeing with defense attorneys who argued that Halligan, a former White House aide with no prior experience as a prosecutor, had stayed in office past the 120-day period that an interim U.S. attorney is allowed to serve before Senate confirmation or approval from the district’s judges.
She therefore ruled that all actions “flowing from Ms Halligan’s defective appointment, including securing and signing Mr Comey’s indictment, were unlawful exercises of executive power.”
Trump tapped Halligan to serve as interim attorney for the district in September after her predecessor, Erik Siebert, another short-term appointment, resigned after reportedly concluding there was insufficient evidence to prosecute Comey and James criminally.
Days after she assumed office, Halligan, a former Miss Colorado contestant and Florida home-insurance litigator, secured a two-count criminal indictment against Comey for making false statements and obstructing a congressional proceeding.
A few weeks later, Halligan brought a criminal indictment against James on charges of bank fraud and making false statements in connection with a loan for a house she purchased in Virginia in 2020.
Both officials pleaded not guilty before their cases were dismissed.
The White House has since moved to have Halligan’s nomination considered by the Senate Judiciary Committee, in the hope of advancing her candidacy to a full Senate vote.
“She’s the president’s nominee,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Independent in a December statement. “It is our hope that she is confirmed and submitting her questionnaire is part of that process.”
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