A federal judge denied a motion to transfer Flynn v. the United States out of the Sunshine State.
U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Florida Mary Scrivens ordered that the case remain in Florida.
After General Michael Flynn sued the DOJ, FBI, and U.S. government alleging malicious prosecution and gross abuse of process, attorneys for the government attempted to have the case moved to Washington, D.C.
“That's huge for General Flynn because it keeps everything on a level playing field for him when it comes to juries,” said Michael Thompson, chairman of the Lee County Republican Executive Committee. “If you take this and put it in Washington DC, there's absolutely no way anyone is going to side with General Flynn just because of the political makeup.”
Thompson has worked with Gen. Flynn on election integrity.
In his 62-page complaint, Flynn accuses government agents of violating his constitutional rights as well as other allegedly unjustified and illegal actions.
“The DOJ, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Office of the Special Counsel personnel knew or should have known of the lack of basis for the investigation, interview, and charge before the criminal information was ever filed,” wrote Flynn’s attorney Jason Greaves in his Third Amended complaint. “Therefore, agents and agencies of the United States of America utilized their official positions and offices to initiate a baseless investigation, keep that investigation open, undertake illegitimate investigative steps, and bring unjustified criminal charges to maliciously prosecute General Flynn.”
Flynn's legal counsel filed the brief on July 31 rendering a motion to dismiss filed by the federal government as moot.
"Defendant shall be free to reassert any challenges raised therein to the extent that the arguments remain viable against the Amended Complaint," Scrivens wrote in her minute order.
The government's motion to dismiss states that Flynn entered a guilty plea voluntarily in 2017 because he was guilty.
Flynn seeks up to $50 million in damages to be determined by a jury trial.
“It was all coordinated attacks,” Thompson told the Florida Record. “They maliciously went after General Flynn on purpose. It was all fraudulent. It was Russia, Russia, Russia, and now that has been debunked so obviously General Flynn is an innocent man. He's doing everything that he should be doing in order to clear his name and bring accountability to the United States.”