State Dept. pores over Clinton emails

15,000 previously undisclosed messages vetted amid lawsuit

WASHINGTON The State Department is reviewing nearly 15,000 emails as part of a batch of previously undisclosed communications that emerged in the FBI’s year-long investigation of Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton’s use of a private server while secretary of State.

Government lawyers acknowledged the action Monday in federal court where the conservative legal group Judicial Watch seeks release of the messages as part of a public records lawsuit.

The communications, contained in 14,900 documents, represent both personal and work-related materials that must be vetted before they can be made public. “State has not yet had the opportunity to complete a review of the documents to determine whether they are agency records or if they are duplicative of documents State has already produced through the Freedom of Information Act,” spokesman Mark Toner said.

U.S. District Judge James Boasberg ordered Monday that the government provide the status of its review by Sept. 23.

The emails, Judicial Watch officials argued, represent a contradiction of assertions by the former secretary of State that all work-related emails had been turned over to State for review.

Judicial Watch’s lawsuit keeps the Clinton email controversy alive after an FBI investigation was closed last month in a decision not to bring criminal charges against the Democratic nominee.

Last week, the FBI provided a summary of its findings to Congress after Republican leaders challenged the conclusions of federal investigators.

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus seized on the email review Monday, saying Clinton “seems incapable of telling the truth.”

The Clinton campaign maintained she provided State with all work-related communications in her possession in 2014, but if any new material proves work-related, “we support those documents being released publicly as well,” spokesman Brian Fallon said.