Lawyers for President Donald Trump’s administration have withdrawn subpoenas attempting to compel testimony from New York Times reporters who wrote about security concerns involving the new Air Force One plane.
The move came as a federal judge questioned why Trump officials were seeking records from three journalists and their families.
The paper had published stories alleging that the plane, a gift from Qatar, was not secure, and the Secret Service urged Trump to switch aircraft on his way home from a Nato summit in Turkey.
Trump officials had said the subpoenas were necessary to stop government secrets being leaked, while the Times called them “abusive and improper”.
During a court hearing on Thursday, Sean Buckley, chief counsel to the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, conceded the Department of Justice had made some procedural missteps in serving the legal summonses.
Judge Arun Subramanian told federal lawyers they could try again if they refiled new subpoenas.
After the hearing, a justice department spokesperson insisted the leak probe would continue.
“Make no mistake, this investigation remains ongoing, and we will pursue justice against those threatening national security by leaking classified information, a serious federal crime,” said the statement.
In court papers challenging the government, attorneys for the New York Times had said that federal agents were seeking records from phones belonging to one journalist’s mother, and another’s spouse.
