Crime & JusticeDeveloping
Lawyers for James Comey ask judge to dismiss third federal case against him
By Mantle News
Coverage spectrum
Covered by 4 outlets, all left-leaning.
4 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias
NBC News, CBS News, ABC News and The Guardian report that lawyers for former FBI director James Comey will ask a federal judge to block the Justice Department from pursuing a third criminal case against him. The Guardian reports that court documents unsealed on Monday show the Justice Department bypassed a grand jury and filed a criminal information over a decade-old news media leak case that had been investigated twice before with no action taken. The Justice Department says the filing extends the time limit for seeking a grand jury indictment. Comey’s lawyers say the case is legally invalid because it was not presented to a grand jury within the statute of limitations. Judge Trevor McFadden in Washington, DC, is expected to hear arguments on Friday. Comey says he is innocent of the allegations.
Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works
What happened
Key points
Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.
Comey’s lawyers ask a federal judge to block the Justice Department’s third criminal case against him.
One side only: the leftReported byLeft4See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- NBC News, CBS News, ABC News, The Guardian
A hearing on the request is set for Friday.
One side only: the leftReported byLeft2See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- CBS News, The Guardian
Court documents unsealed on Monday show the Justice Department filed a criminal information without a grand jury over a decade-old news media leak case that had been investigated twice before.
One outletThe Guardian· Left
The Justice Department says the filing extends the time limit for seeking a grand jury indictment, while Comey’s lawyers say the case is legally invalid.
One side only: the leftReported byLeft2See the outletsHide the outlets
- Left
- NBC News, The Guardian
Comey says he is innocent of the allegations.
One outletThe Guardian· Left
What is contested
Where accounts differ
Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.
The third case against Comey is legally valid.
The Justice Department says the filing extends the time limit for seeking a grand jury indictment. Comey’s lawyers say the case is legally invalid because it was not presented to a grand jury within the statute of limitations.
How each side tells it
Compare views
All four outlets report that lawyers for James Comey will ask a federal judge to block the Justice Department’s third criminal case against him. The coverage treats the dispute mainly as a legal question about whether the charging document was filed within the statute of limitations.
the left
4 outlets
Headlines lead with Comey’s lawyers seeking to dismiss or block the third DOJ case, presenting it as a legal motion before a judge; the ABC headline is an AP report written elsewhere.
James Comey lawyers seek to have third criminal case dismissed
The GuardianLeftAll left-leaning headlines the center
No coverage yet
No center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
the right
No coverage yet
No right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
The words they chose
Language to notice
Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.
Left5
Trump foelatest attempt to charge himbypassed a grand juryRepublican outrage
Center
Has not covered this story.
Right
Has not covered this story.
In the outlets’ own words
Loaded modifier
Trump foeMore neutral: critic of Trump
Calling Comey a Trump foe labels him by his opposition to the president rather than by his role, which pre-judges how readers see the case.
James Comey’s team in court seeking to toss out third DOJ case against longtime Trump foe
Used byNBC News (Left)CBS News (Left)
Loaded verb
latest attempt to charge himMore neutral: latest criminal charges against him
Calling the filing an attempt suggests it may fail, which the article has not established.
DOJ and Comey's lawyers to face off today over latest attempt to charge him
Used byCBS News (Left)
Loaded verb
bypassed a grand juryMore neutral: filed a charging document without seeking a grand jury indictment
Bypassed implies the grand jury was avoided improperly, which is a judgement the excerpt does not establish.
…documents unsealed Monday showed that the Trump administration this month bypassed a grand jury and filed a charging document known as a “criminal information” over…
Used byABC News (Left)
Sensational language
Republican outrageMore neutral: criticism from Republicans
The word outrage characterizes Republican criticism of Comey in emotional terms rather than describing it neutrally.
…him from that post early in his first term, and he is a frequent target of Republican outrage.
Used byThe Guardian (Left)
Show 1 more phrasesShow fewer
Loaded verb
bypassedMore neutral: did not go through
The word implies the administration evaded a required step, which is a judgement about the filing that the facts alone do not establish.
Court documents unsealed on Monday showed that the Trump administration this month bypassed a grand jury and filed a charging document known as a “criminal information” over…
Used byThe Guardian (Left)
See for yourself
Side by side
What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.
From the left
4 outletsLeads with
- Comey’s legal challenge to the case
- Third case brought by the Justice Department
- Filing without a grand jury
- Earlier investigations with no action
See the 4 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
- The GuardianLeft
James Comey lawyers seek to have third criminal case dismissed
Federal judge to hear arguments on Friday over leak case that was twice previously investigated with no action taken Lawyers for the former FBI director James Comey will ask a federal judge on Friday to block the US justice department from pursuing its third criminal case …
Lawyers for ex-FBI Director James Comey will ask a judge to block Justice Department prosecution
Former FBI Director James Comey's lawyers will ask a federal judge to block the Justice Department from pursuing its third criminal case against the outspoken critic of President Donald Trump and frequent target of the Republican’s outrage
- CBS NewsLeft
DOJ and Comey's lawyers to face off today over Loaded verb“latest attempt to charge him”Calling the filing an attempt suggests it may fail, which the article has not established.More neutral: latest criminal charges against himDisagree with this highlight?
Former FBI Director James Comey will be back in a federal courtroom on Friday, as his legal team prepares to argue for dismissing the Justice Department's latest attempt to criminally charge him.
- NBC NewsLeft
James Comey’s team in court seeking to toss out third DOJ case against longtime Loaded modifier“Trump foe”Calling Comey a Trump foe labels him by his opposition to the president rather than by his role, which pre-judges how readers see the case.More neutral: critic of TrumpDisagree with this highlight?
Attorneys for the former FBI director contend the third case isn’t valid on its face because it wasn’t presented to a federal grand jury within the statute of limitations.
From the center
0 outletsNo center outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
From the right
0 outletsNo right-leaning outlet that Mantle follows has covered this story yet. That absence is part of the picture.
The stories you read build My Mix, a private picture of which sides cover the stories you choose, kept on this device. What is My Mix?
The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.
Who reported it when
How the coverage built up
Left
First to report
NBC News, Oct 30, 5:00 AM EDT
Center
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
Right
No report yet
From the outlets Mantle follows
See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
- NBC NewsLeftOct 30, 5:00 AM EDT
- CBS NewsLeftOct 30, 6:00 AM EDT
- ABC NewsLeftOct 30, 7:37 AM EDT
- The GuardianLeftOct 30, 8:26 AM EDT
Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.
Read next
More on Crime & Justice
PoliticsDeveloping
Former Minnesota Democrat says federal probe into Ilhan Omar’s marriage is legitimate
2 outlets
More on Crime & Justice
Business & MarketsBreaking
Binance investigates security incident affecting about $6.3 billion in crypto assets
29 outlets
Next in today’s stories
PoliticsDeveloping
Trump cancels Kansas rally and switches to tele-rallies before midterms
21 outlets
Next in today’s stories
PoliticsDeveloping
Peltola denies knowing of effort to recruit same-name candidate in Alaska Senate race
21 outlets
A story one side mostly skipped
Immigration & BorderDeveloping
DHS disputes 60 Minutes segment on Texas father Moussa Diawara after his deportation
14 outletsQuiet in the center