The judge in the trial of former Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) revoked the travel restrictions that had been placed on Stevens, ordered that his passport be returned and formally opened a new case for investigating possible contempt charges against the prosecutors who tried him.

The Justice Department acknowledged April 1 that the prosecutors had improperly withheld evidence from Stevens’ legal team and asked the court to dismiss the charges against the former Senator. The court agreed.

In October, a federal jury had found Stevens guilty on seven felony counts for failing to report hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gifts on his annual financial disclosure forms.

Judge Emmet Sullivan has appointed an independent prosecutor to investigate potential criminal contempt charges against members of the prosecution team, and on Friday, he established a new case for that investigation, essentially separating it from the Stevens case docket.