UPDATED: Breaking: DoJ Files Exculpatory Docs In Flynn Case
I guess I can call it "breaking," since Sean Davis of The Federalist reported it about a half hour ago.
Details are murky, since the documents were filed under seal. In the body of the brief story Davis qualifies the report with the word "allegedly":
Newly Filed Court Documents Include Exculpatory Evidence For Michael Flynn
New documents filed under seal in federal court include exculpatory information about former White House National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, an FBI official told The Federalist on Friday.
Further, the use of the term "Department of Justice" is ambiguous, given that many reporters fail to distinguish among various components of DoJ--Main Justice components, a local US Attorney (here, DC). Here's what Davis is able to tell us. Note that the information is sourced to the FBI, rather than to DoJ. The sentence is long, but the beginning and end are the important parts:
The new documents, which were filed under seal by the Department of Justice Friday, allegedly include exonerating evidence about Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about his conversations with foreign diplomats as Trump’s top incoming foreign policy adviser and is currently attempting to withdraw his plea, as well as evidence of malfeasance by the FBI during its investigation of Flynn.
And then there's this important added bit of information:
According to the FBI official who spoke to The Federalist, FBI general counsel Dana Boente led the charge internally against DOJ’s disclosure of the new materials. Boente, who briefly served as acting Attorney General after Trump became president, personally signed off on one of the federal spy warrants against former Trump campaign affiliate Carter Page. The new documents, which were filed under a protective order by DOJ on Friday, will reflect poorly on the FBI, the official told The Federalist. It is not clear when, or even if, those documents will be unsealed and made available to the public for review.
Finally, while we can only speculate at this point, we do know that at the beginning of April AG Barr brought in an outside US Attorney--Jeffrey Jensen of St. Louis--to "reexamine" the entire Flynn case. Was this disclosure of documents--apparently strongly opposed by Dana Boente, a longtime highlevel DoJ official and now FBI Director Wray's counsel--made at the instigation of Jensen? I think we know it wouldn't have been undertaken by the lead prosecutor, former Team Mueller lawyer Brandon Van Grack, whose work Jensen is "reexamining."
Very interesting.
UPDATE 1: OK, I was right--the release of documents was by USA Jensen, whom Barr appointed to "reexamine" the Flynn case. "EDMO" in the letter from Shea (USA-DC) that Sidney Powell posted means "Eastern District of Missouri," which is St. Louis--and that means Jensen.
Significant development regardless, and Powell characterizes the documents as "remarkable new & long withheld BRADY evidence."
UPDATE 2: I'm about to start reading Sidney Powell's supplement to the motion to dismiss. According to TGP Powell says that the new material “defeats any argument that the interview of Mr. Flynn on January 24 was material to any “investigation.” The government has deliberately suppressed this evidence from the inception of this prosecution—knowing there was no crime by Mr. Flynn.” This, of course, was at the heart of what I argued strenuously: The FBI agents who interviewed Flynn--and those like Comey and McCabe who ordered their actions--were acting outside their official authority. They knew there was no crime to investigate or any other legitimate action. They were part of a conspiracy to deprive Flynn of his civil rights under color of official authority and law .
Powell also claims that she “has found further evidence of misconduct by Mr. Van Grack specifically.” Maybe Van Grack will want to spill the beans on Team Mueller?
It's hard to believe that what's going down isn't part of Durham's investigation.
UPDATE 3: This passage from the Supplement to the Motion to Dismiss gives an idea of what may be coming:
Since August 2016 at the latest, partisan FBI and DOJ leaders conspired to destroy Mr.Flynn. These documents show in their own handwriting and emails that they intended either to create an offense they could prosecute or at least get him fired. Then came the incredible malfeasance of Mr. Van Grack’s and the SCO’s prosecution despite their knowledge there was no crime by Mr. Flynn. All this new evidence, and the government has advised there is more to come, proves that the crimes were committed by the FBI officials and then the prosecutors. The government’s misconduct in this case is beyond shocking and reprehensible. It mandates dismissal.
Furthermore, this Court should order the government immediately to provide the defense with unredacted copies of the documents in Exhibit 3, filed under seal. Those documents were filed under seal solely in an abundance of caution because the government produced them under the protective order, and we request that they be unsealed. Consequently, Mr. Flynn is filing Exhibit 3 to this Supplement contemporaneously and asks that the Court promptly unseal the document.