FBI Director James Comey said Wednesday that the Justice Department gave immunity to top Hillary Clinton aide and attorney Cheryl Mills, not the bureau.
Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner (R., Wis.) questioned Comey on the matter at a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee.
"Who authorized granting Cheryl Mills immunity?" Sensenbrenner asked.
"It’s a decision made by the Department of Justice. I don’t know at what level inside," Comey said. "In our investigations, if anything, any kind of immunity comes from the prosecutors, not the investigators."
Sensenbrenner then asked if Mills requested the immunity.
"I don’t know for sure what the negotiations involved," Comey said. "I believe her lawyer asked for ‘act of production immunity’ with respect to the production of her laptop. That’s my understanding, but again, the FBI wasn’t part of those conversations."
Mills was Clinton’s chief of staff at the State Department and was one of the people who sat in on the FBI interview with Clinton, even though Mills herself had already been questioned by them.
Attorney General Loretta Lynch declined to press charges against Clinton at Comey’s recommendation over the investigation into her private email server. Days before it was announced that there would be no prosecution of Clinton, Lynch met privately with Clinton’s husband, former president Bill Clinton. Both denied discussing the ongoing email probe.