The judge presiding over the criminal case for the former national security adviser Michael Flynn has been recused.

Flynn last week pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russia.

Flynn's sentencing will be overseen by another US District Court judge.



The US District Court for the District of Columbia judge presiding over the criminal case for President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn has been recused from handling the case, a court spokeswoman said on Thursday.

According to a court filing, Judge Rudolph Contreras, who presided over a December 1 hearing where Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his contacts with Russia, will no longer handle the case.

The spokeswoman, Lisa Klem, did not say why Contreras was recused and added that the case was randomly reassigned.

Reuters could not immediately learn the reason for the recusal or reach Contreras.

An attorney for Flynn declined to comment.

Flynn's sentencing will now be overseen by US District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan. Sullivan is an appointee of President Bill Clinton.

Flynn was the first member of the Trump administration to plead guilty to a crime uncovered by the special counsel Robert Mueller's ongoing, wide-ranging investigation into Russian attempts to influence the 2016 US presidential election and whether any Trump campaign aides colluded with Moscow. Russia has denied meddling in the election, and Trump has dismissed any suggestion of collusion.

Flynn has agreed to cooperate with Mueller's investigation.

A sentencing date has not yet been set, but the parties are due to return to court on February 1 for a status report hearing.

Contreras was appointed to the bench in 2012 by President Barack Obama.

He was also appointed to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court in May 2016 for a term lasting through 2023. That court issues warrants that allow Justice Department officials to wiretap individuals, a process that has been thrown into the spotlight amid the Russia investigation.

The most recent controversy related to so-called FISA warrants involves Peter Strzok, a senior FBI agent who was removed from the Russia investigation for having exchanged text messages with a colleague that could be perceived as anti-Trump.

At a hearing on Thursday at the House Judiciary Committee, Republican Rep. Jim Jordan pressed FBI Director Christopher Wray on whether Strzok used a former British spy's dossier of allegations of links between Russia and Trump's campaign and associates to obtain a FISA warrant to surveil Trump's transition team.

Sullivan previously served on the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and the District of Columbia Court of Appeals under appointments by Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, respectively.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Nathan Layne; editing by Sandra Maler, Toni Reinhold)