A judge handed down a decision against Donald Trump's administration, and it holds the blueprint to Trump's foes defeating the indictments they've been hit with, according to a Watergate prosecutor.
Nick Akerman, a former assistant special Watergate prosecutor and former assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, said in an opinion piece published Sunday that Letitia James and James Comey have received a golden opportunity in the form of a decision in favor of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a Salvadoran migrant who lived in the U.S. legally with a work permit and was erroneously deported to El Salvador.
"President Trump’s plans to use the Justice Department to seek revenge against his perceived enemies may have just hit a major roadblock. Earlier this month, Memphis federal district court judge Waverly D. Crenshaw, Jr. issued an opinion in the criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia in response to a motion to dismiss for vindictive and selective prosecution," Akerman wrote this weekend, noting that the decision has "wide-ranging implications."
"This decision has wide-ranging ramifications. It is likely the death knell of the indictmentsagainst former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), as well as other perceived enemies whom Trump has threatened for prosecution solely for political revenge," he wrote. "Trump’s enemies list includes Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and former CIA Director John Brennan."
He added, "This highly unusual opportunity for Abrego to pull back the curtain in a public hearing is likely to be highly embarrassing to the Justice Department and the White House."
"To ensure that Comey and James would be indicted, Trump appointed a new U.S. Attorney, Lindsey Halligan, who blindly followed Trump’s orders to indict. Halligan, an insurance lawyer, was never a prosecutor, has no understanding of federal criminal law and is clueless about how to formulate federal criminal charges," the attorney wrote. "Based on the judge’s reasoning, Comey and James should be able to pursue a highly aggressive defense and take testimony from all those who participated in or are knowledgeable about the bogus decision to indict them, subpoena relevant documents and present the results in a public hearing."