Alexander Smirnov, an indicted ex-FBI informant charged by special counsel David Weiss with lying to the FBI about alleged Biden family corruption in Ukraine, is now attempting to leverage Judge Cannon’s ruling, which dismissed Trump’s classified documents case, to dismiss his own case.
In a 21-page filing submitted on Monday, Smirnov’s lawyers referenced Cannon’s decision in the second paragraph and cited it over a dozen times throughout. Their arguments echoed many of the same unconventional theories endorsed by Cannon regarding the appointment and funding of special counsels.
“This present Indictment was brought by an unauthorized Special Counsel with funds that were not appropriated by Congress. The Court should thus dismiss the Indictment,” they argued.
However, there is a significant difference between the investigations led by Smith and Weiss. Weiss was a presidentially nominated and Senate-confirmed US attorney when Attorney General Merrick Garland appointed him as special counsel. In contrast, Smith was neither a presidential appointee nor a Justice Department employee at the time of his 2022 appointment, which contributed to Cannon’s conclusion that Smith’s appointment was improper.
Cannon’s decision is atypical. In recent years, federal judges in California, Delaware, and Washington, DC, have rejected similar challenges against Weiss and former special counsel Robert Mueller.
Smirnov has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges related to his alleged false statements to the FBI about the Bidens.
