DOJ moves to dismiss Flynn case following pardon

The Department of Justice on Monday moved to dismiss the case against Michael Flynn as moot following President Trump’s pardon of his former national security adviser.

A federal judge had been considering whether to allow the DOJ to drop its charges against Flynn despite him pleading guilty early on in the case.

The move to suddenly drop charges against Flynn in May sparked controversy over whether the administration had intervened in a prosecution against one of Trump’s allies.

U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan appointed an outside counsel to argue against letting prosecutors drop the case and set a briefing schedule over whether the move should be allowed.

The case was further delayed when Flynn’s legal team filed an emergency appeal asking a higher court to force Sullivan to dismiss the charges. An appeals court ultimately ruled against Flynn’s petition and sent the case back to Sullivan.

John Gleeson, a former federal judge who Sullivan tapped as outside counsel, argued that the DOJ should not be allowed to withdraw from the case. He also accused Flynn of perjury in seeking to change his plea.

In its filing on Monday, the DOJ revealed the official pardon signed by Trump last week. It shows that Flynn now has immunity from any contempt charges that might come out of the case against him, as well as any charges stemming from former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation.

Flynn had pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators about his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. during Trump’s transition period in late 2016. The episode forced Flynn out of the White House just three weeks after he was sworn in as national security adviser in 2017.