by WorldTribune Staff, May 26, 2020

The judge who denied the Department of Justice’s request to immediately drop the prosecution of former national security adviser Michael Flynn has hired a high-profile Washington, D.C. attorney to defend his decision, a report said.

U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan has retained Beth Wilkinson to represent him in a federal appeals court in Washington, The Washington Post reported.

The U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit is currently reviewing whether Sullivan overstepped his authority in the case against Flynn.

After denying the DOJ’s request, Sullivan refused a move by Flynn’s lawyers to force the judge to toss Flynn’s guilty plea.

In court documents, the DOJ said it wanted to drop the case against Flynn “after a considered review of all the facts and circumstances of this case, including newly discovered and disclosed information.”

The appeals court set a June 1 deadline for Sullivan to respond to a petition from Flynn’s lawyers asking for the case’s immediate dismissal. The appeals court will also hear arguments from Flynn’s team as to why they believe Sullivan should be dismissed from the case.

Wilkinson represented Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his 2018 Senate confirmation hearings. In 2016, Wilkinson represented four of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s aides in the FBI’s investigation of Clinton’s use of a private email server.

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