A senior prosecutor was removed from the U.S. attorney’s office in the Eastern District of Virginia after President Donald Trump's former aide took over.
Maggie Cleary became the latest Department of Justice employee to leave the office after Trump ally Lindsey Halligan was installed as U.S. attorney despite having no experience as a prosecutor and moving swiftly to win indictments against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James, reported CNN.
"The move indicates a deepening split between the Halligan, who leads the powerful office, and its roster of experienced prosecutors," the network reported. "Another source familiar with the dynamic in the office told CNN that Halligan was interested in moving around prosecutors who she believed may oppose her work on highly politicized cases."
It's not clear whether Cleary remains employed by the Justice Department or whether she was shifted to another role, according to sources, and she could not be reached for comment, while a DOJ spokesman declined to comment.
Trump pressured Halligan's predecessor, Erik Siebert, to resign after he questioned the case against Comey, who was charged with giving false testimony and obstructing a congressional investigation.
"Cleary sided with career prosecutors who opposed bringing the Comey case," CNN reported. "She sat in a back row, not at the government table, when Halligan presented the indictment from the grand jury before the magistrate judge."
Two other career prosecutors, Michael Ben’Ary and Maya Song, were fired shortly after Comey's indictment, and the former FBI director's son in son-in-law Troy Edwards Jr. also resigned after serving as a career prosecutor in the office.