Comey
(Getty
Images)
Magistrate
Judge
William
Fitzpatrick
just
dropped
a
legal
mic
on
prosecutors
in
the
James
Comey
case.
In
a
blistering
24-page
opinion,
he
ordered
the
Department
of
Justice
to
turn
over
all
grand
jury
materials
related
to
the
Comey
indictment
to
the
defense.
(Though
the
government
has
asked
for
a
stay
in
complying
with
the
order
while
the
file
their
objections.)
Because,
despite
the
Trump
administration’s
best
efforts,
due
process
is
still
a
thing.
And
if
this
seems
highly
unusual,
well,
you’re
not
wrong!
But
prosecuting
your
political
enemies
over
the
objections
of
career
prosecutors
is
also
highly
unusual
(or
at
least
it
used
to
be,
pre-2025)
so
that’s
where
we’ve
landed.
Fitzpatrick’s
opinion
reads
like
a
cold
call
of
a
law
student
who
spent
the
semester
playing
Fortnite
instead
of
doing
the
reading.
He
all
but
accuses
the
investigative
team
of
fumbling
their
way
into
a
constitutional
ditch:
“The
record
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.”
That
is
spectacularly
harsh
judicial
language.
When
a
judge
says
your
work
“undermined
the
integrity”
of
the
grand
jury,
that’s
not
a
critique
—
that’s
a
diagnosis.
And
the
cure?
Full
disclosure
of
all
the
grand
jury
materials.
Lest
anyone
miss
the
severity,
Fitzpatrick
says
the
quiet
part
loud:
“The
court
recognizes
this
is
an
extraordinary
remedy,
but
given
the
factually
based
challenges
the
defense
has
raised
to
the
government’s
conduct
and
the
prospect
that
government
misconduct
may
have
tainted
the
grand
jury
proceedings,
disclosure
of
grand
jury
materials
under
these
unique
circumstances
is
necessary
to
fully
protect
the
rights
of
the
accused.”
Judges
don’t
casually
throw
around
phrases
like
“tainted
the
grand
jury.”
That
Fitzpatrick
is
using
the
term
at
all
should
make
DOJ
attorneys
want
to
crawl
under
the
table
and
rethink
their
career
choices.
Because
“extraordinary
remedy”?
That’s
judge-speak
for
“you
left
me
no
choice.”
Read
the
full
benchslap
—
the
second
in
the
case,
it
should
be
noted
—
below.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
email
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
Twitter
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].