Attorney General Loretta Lynch would not say Monday whether a grand jury had been convened in the ongoing FBI investigation into Hillary Clinton’s private email server.
Without a grand jury and the support of the Justice Department, the FBI would not be able to subpoena Clinton or charge her with a crime, even if there is conclusive evidence that she broke the law. Additionally, without a grand jury the Clinton campaign does not have to admit that there is a formal investigation of its candidate.
Lynch wouldn’t answer Fox News anchor Bret Baier when he asked whether a grand jury had been convened for the investigation.
"Well, we don't comment on specifics," Lynch said, adding that the review was being run just like any other. "What I will say, as I said to the congressmen, is that this is a matter that's being handled like any other review that we do, into how any agency has handled classified information. It's being handled by the career independent lawyers here at the department, and they will review the facts and evidence and make a determination in due course."
Baier clarified that it would be perfectly legal for Lynch to answer his question, and asked again whether a grand jury had been convened.
"I know you can't tell us what happens in a grand jury, but there's no law preventing you from telling us whether a grand jury has been convened if we publicly know there’s an investigation of a person or subject. So, has one been convened?" Baier said.
Lynch refused to answer.
"We don't comment on specifics of any of our investigations," Lynch said. "We're looking at whether or not classified information was handled in a particular way, in an appropriate way. It's the type of case we look at all the time."
Lynch also would not say whether the investigation had ended or which section of the Justice Department was working on the case.
"We don’t comment," Lynch said.