Comey asks judge to dismiss criminal charges claiming selective prosecution

Ex-FBI director claims he is victim of selective prosecution and charges were filed by unlawfully appointed attorney

Former FBI director James Comey has formally asked a federal judge to dismiss criminal charges against him, arguing he was the victim of a selective prosecution and that the US attorney who filed the charges was unlawfully appointed.

“The record as it currently exists shows a clear causal link between President Trump’s animus and the prosecution of Mr Comey,” Comey’s lawyers wrote in their request to dismiss the case, calling a 20 September Truth Social post in which he disparaged Comey and called for his prosecution “smoking gun evidence”. They continued: “President Trump’s repeated public statements and action leave no doubt as to the government’s genuine animus toward Mr Comey.”