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A US government watchdog said on Thursday it would examine whether the FBI followed proper procedures in its inquiry into Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server while secretary of state.
The inspector general’s announcement comes amid outcry from Democrats, who say Ms Clinton’s loss to president-elect Donald Trump in last November’s presidential election was in part due to FBI director James Comey bringing Ms Clinton’s emails back into the public spotlight less than two weeks before the vote.
The US justice department’s office of inspector general said its inquiry would focus in part on decisions leading up to public communications by Mr Comey regarding the FBI’s investigation into Ms Clinton, and whether underlying investigative decisions may have been based on “improper considerations”.
The FBI investigation involved Ms Clinton’s use of a private email server for official correspondence when she was secretary of state under US president Barack Obama, including for messages that were later determined to contain classified information.
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Mr Comey publicly announced the status of the agency’s investigation into the emails twice in 2016.
Although the FBI ultimately decided not to refer Ms Clinton’s case for prosecution, Mr Comey’s statements aroused suspicion that may have diminished trust in Ms Clinton among voters.
Press conference
In July, Mr Comey held a press conference on the issue and testified before US Congress to explain why the FBI had decided not to refer Ms Clinton for prosecution, explaining that she had been “extremely careless” but should not be charged with gross negligence or any other federal crime.
In October, less than two weeks before the November 8th election, Mr Comey announced the FBI was continuing the investigation because of new emails found on the computer of disgraced former representative Anthony Weiner, the husband of one of Ms Clinton’s top aides, during a separate inquiry.
On November 6th, Mr Comey said the investigation into Mr Weiner’s computer produced no new evidence that would incriminate Ms Clinton.
Brian Fallon, Ms Clinton’s spokesman, told MSNBC on Thursday that Mr Comey’s actions “cried out for an independent review”.
Prosecutors and law enforcement, including the FBI, traditionally do not disclose information about investigations that do not end in criminal charges.
Reuters