JONATHAN TURLEY: Former prosecutor accused of stealing files and hiding them as recipes

Former Justice Department authoritative Carmen Mercedes Lineberger has been indicted for allegedly removing confidential Justice Department worldly and past concealing her efforts. Lineberger is accused of secretly transferring erstwhile Special Counsel Jack Smith’s last study and hiding the worldly nether files labeled "chocolate barroom recipe" and "bundt barroom recipe." There has not been a greater look for catastrophe since aides tried to acceptable each of President Joe Biden’s candles connected a cake. The lawsuit is peculiarly absorbing due to the fact that determination was different idiosyncratic who was accused of a concealed removal of Justice Department worldly who was not prosecuted: erstwhile FBI Director James Comey.

Linebarger, 62, of Port St. Lucie, Fla., has been indicted connected 4 transgression charges: 1 felony number of obstruction of justice, 1 felony number of concealing authorities records and 2 misdemeanor counts of theft of authorities spot valued astatine little than $1,000.

According to the indictment, Lineberger altered physics record names of authorities records to conceal unauthorized transmissions of the documents to her idiosyncratic email accounts and utilized record names for barroom recipes to conceal her possession of the confidential information.

U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon blocked the nationalist merchandise of the study aft the prosecution collapsed against President Donald Trump.

FORMER DOJ PROSECUTOR CHARGED WITH STEALING CONFIDENTIAL JACK SMITH INVESTIGATION DOCUMENTS ABOUT TRUMP

Former peculiar counsel Jack Smith testifies during a proceeding earlier the House Judiciary Committee successful the Rayburn House Office Building connected Capitol Hill connected Jan. 22, 2026, successful Washington, D.C. (Al Drago/Getty Images)

The Justice Department alleges that Lineberger received a transcript of Smith’s study earlier the tribunal sealed it. Months later, she allegedly decided to transportation it to her idiosyncratic email relationship successful usurpation of the tribunal bid and Justice Department rules.

She has present pleaded not blameworthy and faces up to 20 years connected the obstruction complaint and different charges.

The determination is notable for a mates of reasons.

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First, Smith made 1 past determination successful dismissing the lawsuit against Trump that near the doorway unfastened to resuming his prosecution. Smith moved to disregard the indictment "without prejudice" and past stressed to the tribunal that the section has antecedently "noted the anticipation that a tribunal mightiness equitably toll the statute of limitations to licence proceeding against the President erstwhile retired of office." In different words, Trump could beryllium prosecuted aft helium leaves office.

It is not known what the motive mightiness person been successful this transfer. One anticipation would beryllium a benignant of souvenir oregon trophy grab, which would beryllium ironic fixed Smith’s proposition that Trump whitethorn person transferred classified worldly for that benignant of possessory thrill. Another is the imaginable usage for a book. Finally, determination mightiness person been a tendency to sphere grounds to debar demolition during the Trump years oregon imaginable merchandise to the media.

The 2nd notable facet is that Comey was accused of specified a knowing removal, but helium was ne'er really prosecuted.

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There was nary tribunal bid governing the worldly removed by Comey aft his firing, but it was intelligibly departmental material.

The Inspector General, Michael Horowitz, recovered that Comey was a leaker and had violated FBI policy in his handling of FBI memos. He recovered that Comey grabbed the worldly connected his mode retired of the Bureau, including those containing the "code sanction and existent identity" of a delicate source.

The Justice Department alleges that Lineberger received a transcript of Smith’s study earlier the tribunal sealed it. Months later, she allegedly decided to transportation it to her idiosyncratic email relationship successful usurpation of the tribunal bid and Justice Department rules.

While helium did not find a disclosure of the classified information, Horowitz recovered that Comey took "he unauthorized disclosure of delicate investigative information, obtained during the people of FBI employment, successful bid to execute a personally desired outcome." He further added that Comey "set a unsafe illustration for the implicit 35,000 existent FBI employees—and the galore thousands much erstwhile FBI employees—who likewise person entree to oregon cognition of non-public information."

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Comey aboriginal admitted that helium asked his friend, Columbia Law Professor Daniel Richman, to leak accusation from the documents to The New York Times.

While Comey is facing a anemic transgression case over threats conveyed done formation shells, immoderate of america saw his behaviour successful removing this worldly arsenic a much superior breach.

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Comey went connected to constitute books connected "ethical leadership" and precocious sent a connection to existent FBI unit that they should "hang on" and hold retired Trump: "In 2 and a fractional years, and past we tin rebuild."

Rebuilding the bureau successful Comey’s representation is simply a genuinely chilling notion. Those "good aged days" with Comey allowed agents to motorboat a baseless Russian collusion probe astatine the behest of the Clinton run and prevarication to a concealed tribunal to unafraid surveillance of Trump figures.

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In the meantime, it volition beryllium Lineberger, not Comey, who volition look a assemblage for the removal of confidential material.

For Lineberger, these types of charges thin to beryllium cut-and-dried for prosecutors if they tin amusement that the worldly was restricted and that she took steps to conceal the alleged theft. While she gained entree earlier the tribunal order, she allegedly transferred the worldly aft the bid and past hid the worldly successful files labeled arsenic barroom recipes. If those facts tin beryllium established successful court, prosecutors apt judge that she tin instrumentality a fork successful herself due to the fact that she is done.

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