Maurene Comey Urges Doj Colleagues To Stand Up To 'abuses Of Power' In Memo After Her Firing

A time aft she was fired from her job arsenic a U.S. attorney, Maurene Comey — nan girl of erstwhile FBI Director James Comey — urged her colleagues not to fto fearfulness of retribution "seep into" their decisions and to conflict backmost against "abuses of power."

"Every personification fortunate capable to activity successful this agency perpetually hears 4 words to picture our ethos: Without Fear aliases Favor. Do nan correct thing, nan correct way, for nan correct reasons without fearfulness of retribution and without favour to nan powerful," she wrote successful a memo Thursday to her colleagues.

Comey was fired by nan Justice Department connected Wednesday. She was a cardinal fig successful precocious floor plan cases specified arsenic nan proceedings of Sean “Diddy” Combs and nan prosecutions of Jeffrey Epstein and his co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Epstein, nan financier and convicted activity offender who died successful prison, has been nan taxable of conspiracy theories that person go a major root of contention between President Donald Trump and immoderate of his supporters.

Comey said she was not fixed a logic and that her termination was done via a memo.

A root acquainted pinch nan matter told NBC News connected Wednesday that nan U.S. Attorney’s Office for nan Southern District of New York cited Article II of nan Constitution, which establishes nan executive powerfulness of nan president.

In her memo, Comey talked astir really "fear was ne'er really conceivable" during her astir ten-year tenure for nan Southern District of New York.

"We don’t fearfulness bad press; we person nan luxury of exceptional information keeping america physically safe; and, truthful agelong arsenic we did our activity pinch integrity, we would get to support serving nan nationalist successful this office," she wrote. "Our attraction was really connected acting 'without favor.' That is, making judge group pinch access, money, and powerfulness were not treated otherwise than anyone else; and making judge this agency remained abstracted from authorities and focused only connected nan facts and nan law."

But, Comey said, they are now successful a "new shape wherever 'without fear' whitethorn beryllium nan challenge."

"If a profession charismatic tin beryllium fired without reason, fearfulness whitethorn seep into nan decisions of those who remain. Do not fto that happen," nan memo read. "Fear is nan instrumentality of a tyrant, wielded to suppress independent thought. Instead of fear, fto this infinitesimal substance nan occurrence that already burns astatine nan bosom of this place. A occurrence of righteous indignation astatine abuses of power. Of committedness to activity justness for victims. Of dedication to truth supra each else."

Her father, James Comey, has for years been successful a nationalist feud pinch Trump. James Comey was 1 of nan cardinal figures successful launching a probe of Russia’s engagement successful nan 2016 statesmanlike election.

During his first word arsenic president, Trump fired James Comey, and earlier this month, his management launched a criminal investigation targeting him and erstwhile CIA Director John Brennan. The specifications of nan investigation stay unclear.

When asked astatine a property briefing Thursday astir nan firing, nan White House said, "This was a determination made by nan Department of Justice."