Discovery has begun to flow as Judge Nachmanoff issued an order setting deadlines and the appointment of a CISO.
Rule 16 material is due to be turned over today.
The first piece of discovery, a single page, was produced to the defense at the end of last week.
Filings indicate it perhaps had to do with the appointment of Halligan and/or the identities of PERSON 1 and PERSON 3. While many of us are confident that PERSON 1 is Hillary Clinton (and PERSON 2 would be Donald Trump), the identity of PERSON 3 is up for debate.
Defense counsel intends to file motions to disqualify Halligan, and that motion would be due by October 20th.
Tonight, prosecutors filed a motion asking for a filter team to be used in the handling of certain "quarantined evidence" which is “Potentially Protected Material.”
Of note here:
-The PPM is evidence from an attorney
-"The quarantined evidence was obtained through judicial warrants in a previous government investigation."
-"the government is not aware of any involvement by the Defendant...in this prior review."
The Filter Team hasn't reviewed the material yet, but their job would be to identify and segregate the PPM from the evidence obtained through the previously mentioned attorney.
The protocol that's proposed for handling this would safeguard claims of privilege (attorney-client).
The filter team would give access to the potential privilege holders, who could then assert claims.
A few other interesting things in this filing:
"defense prefers to challenge the underlying search warrant first before any [filter team] review takes place."
The language here indicates that the "putative privilege holders" are not Comey and Fitzgerald.
Perhaps it's Daniel Richman? We know from media reports that he has met with investigators.
We know that in the Arctic Haze media leak investigation, Comey provided his iPhone.
And they interviewed Richman as well as others, ultimately concluding that there was not "sufficient evidence to criminally charge any person, including Comey or Richman"
There's a hefty amount of redactions still on these memos, these sections perhaps being the most intriguing.
We also know from media reports that investigators met with Durham about his media leak investigation, Tropic Vortex, which in some way was potentially informed by or somehow connected to other leak investigations.
Sure would like to read what's in the 1A Package and USA Durham memo.
A filter team could slow things down, and, whether they say so or not, both sides may prefer that.
The prosecution team was only JUST put together days ago and by their own admission are “just getting our hands around” the discovery in the case, while the defense don't even know who PERSON 1 and 3 are.
I through the filings that were made before 3pm today, and gave a lesson on how to pronounce ‘tranche,’ and suggestions on reframing arguments with your spouse, on my most recent podcast episode
Judge McFadden DENIES the defense's motion to disqualify @USAttyPirro and @DAGToddBlanche from the case.
Defense had argued that Blanche and Pirro being at the scene of the alleged crime and publicly commenting on it had created a conflict.
The four main arguments were the following:
(1) Their presence at the WHCA Dinner made them witnesses (both reported hearing the gunshots)
(2) Their presence at the WHCA Dinner made them potential victims of Allen (according to the gov't's theory of the case), (both reported that they were in the “line of fire” and had to be evacuated)
(3) Blanche and Pirro's statements to media about the events at the WHCA Dinner were prejudicial and showed bias
(4) Citing the longtime friendship of Trump and Pirro, Trump being the alleged intended victim, and Pirro being the prosecutor, this created an appearance of impropriety. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…
Judge McFadden addresses argument (1)—Blanche and Pirro were witnesses.
"...whatever firsthand knowledge they have about Allen’s actions appears limited to what anyone in the ballroom would have..."
"...absent special circumstances, an attorney can “elect in which capacity [he] intend[s] to proceed, either as counsel or as a witness.” Because neither side indicates that it plans to call Blanche or Pirro as a witness, the advocate-witness rule poses no concerns."
United States v. Sant
(DAMN Antifa/Melt The Ice Case)
15 defendants
- All charged with Conspiracy to Impede or Injure a Federal Officer
- Some additionally charged with Interstate Stalking, Interstate Threats, Solicitation to Commit a Crime of Violence, Assault on a Federal Officer, and/or Destruction of Government Property
The defendants were previously in or associated with the Twin Cities Direct Action (TCDA) group. That group changed its name to Direct Action Minnesota (DAMN).
DAMN is a conglomerate of Antifa groups, including the Black Cat Worker's Collective (BCWC), Ray Rainbolt Memorial Shooting Club, and others.
All of these groups are "Antifa affinity groups" who mix ideologies of anarchism and communism with ideations, and sometimes actions, of violent resistance and revolution.
"DAMN members worked closely with rapid response networks (RRNs) to identify and harass federal immigration and law enforcement officers in order to harass and prevent officers from performing their official duties."
DAMN members use the "Whipple Watch" Signal group chats to share intelligence on ICE and LE operations, including locations, identifying information, details of operations, numbers, etc.
"Whipple Watch" as in surveilling the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building.
"...federal investigation appears to focus on his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom. Former employees of the governor and people affiliated with his wife’s nonprofit groups are among those who have been questioned by agents, according to the governor’s office."
"No matter who you are or where you live, intersectional gender stereotypes are hurting you and those you love. Through film, education, and activism, The Representation Project awakens consciousness, spotlights the cost of these stereotypes, and invites everyone to build a more equitable future." therepproject.org
The SacBee published an article back in 2021 on how Newsom's wife used The Representation Project to funnel money and influence to her husband's campaign and office.
Perhaps DOJ has taken an interest in what the SacBee described.
The usual suspects are gearing up to fight the DOJ probe into Fulton County, this time as regards the grand jury subpoena for records of employees and volunteers who worked the 2020 election.
On April 20, 2026, the FBI served a subpoena to the Fulton County Board of Registration and Elections for information concerning individuals who worked the 2020 elections in Fulton. (see red box in pic.)
Fulton had until May 5, 2026, to comply but on April 29 asked for a 14-day extension.