Former Trump adviser Michael Flynn on Wednesday lost his lawsuit against the House Jan. 6 select committee over its subpoena for his phone records that compelled him to testify and to produce documents — a day after Flynn filed his motion in federal court in Florida.
On Tuesday, Flynn asked a federal judge in Florida for a temporary restraining order. Flynn claimed that the committee’s subpoenas for his electronic records and testimony could violate his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination in other investigations he’s linked to, which include the reported federal probe into Sidney Powell’s Defending the Republic PAC.
In the decision, U.S. District Court Judge Mary Scriven in Tampa said Flynn failed to meet the procedural requirements needed for emergency intervention. Scriven said that Flynn could refile his request in the future or he could let his requests play out longer in court. Flynn’s motion request help from the judge by Thursday.
Scriven noted that the committee delayed Flynn’s deposition to “a date to be determined.” Although the committee’s subpoena instructed Flynn to produce documents by Nov. 23, Scriven wrote “there is no evidence in the record as to the date by which the select committee now expects Flynn to comply with its document requests.”
Scriven said that the former Trump adviser hasn’t provided in court other relevant evidence about his communications with the committee.
“Flynn has not, however, provided any information about the date by which the Select Committee currently expects him to produce documents,” the judge wrote.
The judge concluded that “there is no basis to conclude that Flynn will face immediate and irreparable harm.”
Flynn’s loss of his bid in court marks the first quick response to a lawsuit from a House witness, following several who attempted to block the House from pursuing their phone records.
