Key prosecutor in John Brennan investigation has been removed from case, AP source says

WASHINGTON (AP) — A lead prosecutor in the John Brennan investigation has been removed from the case after expressing concerns to Justice Department officials about the legal strength of a potential criminal prosecution of the former CIA director, a person familiar with the matter said Friday.

Maria Medetis Long told defense lawyers involved in the investigation that she was no longer participating in the Brennan investigation. Her departure from the investigation came after she conveyed doubt that there was sufficient evidence for a criminal case against Brennan, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press to discuss internal Justice Department conversations.

The Justice Department did not dispute that Medetis Long was no longer part of the investigation but also did not elaborate on the circumstances of her departure. The department said in a statement that “as a matter of routine practice, attorneys are moved around on cases so offices can most effectively allocate resources. It is completely healthy and normal to change members of legal teams.”

CNN first reported Medetis Long’s departure from the investigation. She referred a request for comment to a spokesperson for her office, who did not immediately provide a statement.

Medetis Long heads the national security section at the U.S. Attorney’s office for the Southern District of Florida, which for months has been scrutinizing Brennan in connection with one of President Donald Trump’s chief grievances — the U.S. government’s years-old investigation into potential ties between Russia and Trump’s 2016 campaign for the White House.

Brennan served as CIA director under President Barack Obama and was in the position when the intelligence community published a detailed assessment of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The Justice Department last year received a referral from Rep. Jim Jordan, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, asserting that Brennan had given false testimony about the preparation of that assessment — a claim Brennan and his lawyers have vigorously denied.

Investigators who in recent months have issued a flurry of subpoenas have been preparing for additional interviews in the probe, though it remains unclear whether any charges will be brought or what impact Medetis Long’s departure will have on the case or on witnesses’ willingness to cooperate.

Trump this month replaced Pam Bondi as his attorney general, frustrated by the lack of progress in criminal investigations against political opponents like Brennan.

Her deputy, Todd Blanche, is now acting attorney general and has said that Trump has the right and duty to be involved in seeking investigations against people he has had “issues with.”

Last year, Trump effectively forced out the acting U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Virginia, Erik Siebert, after Siebert did not push forward with criminal charges against two other Trump foes, former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. A hastily installed loyalist prosecutor, Lindsey Halligan, subsequently secured indictments against Comey and James but the cases were thrown out after a judge concluded that Halligan was unlawfully appointed.

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Associated Press writer Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.