US judge throws out criminal cases against James Comey and Letitia James | First Thing

Judge says interim US attorney for eastern district of Virginia had no lawful authority' to indict former FBI director and New York attorney general. Plus, where did all the color go from the movies?

Good morning.

A federal judge threw out the criminal cases against James Comey and Letitia James yesterday, concluding that the prosecutor handling the cases was unlawfully appointed.

What did the judge say? I conclude that the attorney general's attempt to install Ms Halligan as interim US attorney for the eastern district of Virginia was invalid and that Ms Halligan has been unlawfully serving in that role since 22 September 2025," wrote Currie, who was appointed to the bench by Bill Clinton.

When did the talks begin? Reports emerged that a fresh round of US-brokered peace talks had begun on last night in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, with Dan Driscoll, the US army secretary, flying in to meet a Russian delegation and a Ukrainian team led by Kyrylo Budanov.

This is a developing story. Follow our liveblog here.