A federal judge in Washington has turned down a request to remove senior Justice Department officials from the case against a man charged with attempting to kill President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner.
Cole Tomas Allen had argued that having Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and District of Columbia U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro involved in his prosecution posed a conflict of interest, since both were among the administration officials attending the April dinner. Allen’s legal team also pointed to the close personal friendship between Pirro, a former Fox News commentator, and the president as a reason for concern.
U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden rejected those arguments, ruling that neither the officials’ presence at the dinner nor Pirro’s relationship with the president was sufficient grounds to remove them from the case. McFadden pointed out that Allen is not accused of targeting Blanche or Pirro specifically, and there is no indication he even knew they would be at the event.
“They are unlikely to be trial witnesses, nor do they meet the legal definition of victims,” McFadden wrote in his ruling. McFadden himself was nominated to the federal bench by Trump.
Allen faces a range of serious charges, including assaulting a federal official with a deadly weapon and attempted assassination of the president. He has entered a not guilty plea. If convicted on the attempted assassination charge alone, he could face a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Prosecutors also allege that Allen fired a shotgun at a Secret Service agent during the incident, which brought an abrupt and early end to one of Washington’s most prominent annual gatherings. A Secret Service officer who was struck once in a bullet-resistant vest returned fire five times but did not hit anyone. Allen, who is from Torrance, California, was injured during the confrontation but was not shot.
