Judge tosses DOJ case against ex-FBI pair

Federal Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui dismissed the Justice Department's criminal case against Bradley Benavides and Nikki Floris on Monday. The decision removes two former FBI officials from a trial scheduled for the coming months. Both were charged with lying to Congress in 2023 regarding their knowledge of investigations into Hunter Biden. The dismissal effectively halts the government's pursuit of these specific counts unless the department appeals or seeks a new indictment.

Faruqui criticized the investigation as rushed and filled with procedural errors. He described the government's actions as a form of weaponization. The judge noted that the case was opened by FBI Director Kash Patel on the day after President Trump delivered a primetime address in mid-July. In that speech, Trump urged the FBI to investigate the Biden family. The judge emphasized that the alleged false statements occurred in 2023, yet the department waited three years to file charges.

The timing of the prosecution drew specific scrutiny from the court. Charges were filed approximately two weeks before the midterm elections held on Tuesday. A standard Justice Department policy prohibits timing legal actions to influence elections. Faruqui stated that prosecutors used a criminal complaint, a document typically reserved for urgent situations involving imminent danger or flight risks. None of those conditions existed here. The only looming event, he noted, was the election day.

"I am deeply troubled by what has happened here," Faruqui said during the ruling. He added that the events cannot be described as anything other than weaponization. The judge spent an hour laying out the basis for his decision in a packed courtroom. Several former senior FBI officials attended the hearing. The judge also observed that prosecutors seemed to avoid taking the case before a grand jury. This avoidance likely reflected the department's recent record with grand juries in Washington, D.C., which have frequently refused to return indictments in high-profile cases.

A Justice Department spokesperson disagreed with the magistrate's decision in a statement. The spokesperson argued that the ruling suggests high-ranking officials are immune from accountability for false statements to Congress. The department is evaluating all options but will not comment further on the ongoing investigation. The spokesperson said the department's actions will be guided by facts, evidence, and law, not politics. The department retains the right to appeal the decision to the district's chief judge or seek an indictment from a grand jury.

Outside the courtroom after the hearing, a group of former FBI officials greeted Benavides and Floris. Floris hugged several former colleagues before sharing a moment with Benavides. She had tears in her eyes during the exchanges. Margaret Donovan, one of Floris' attorneys, addressed reporters after the dismissal. She stated that the case should never have been brought because the government had no case. Donovan called the complaint a slap-dash effort driven by conspiracy theories.

"Facts still matter in a courtroom," Donovan said. "The truth still matters in a courtroom. And that's what we say prevailed today." The dismissal leaves the door open for further legal action, but it ends the current trial path for the two former officials. The decision stands as a check on prosecutorial discretion in politically charged matters.