GUILTY OR NOT GUILTY? HILLARY NOT GUILTY JAMES COMEY FBI CHIEF A FORMER REPUBLICAN PROSECUTOR INSIST AS THE HOUSE COMMITTEE PROBE FURTHER

FBI chief James Comey on Thursday vigorously defended his recommendation not to file charges against Democratic White House hopeful Hillary Clinton over her private email use at the State Department, saying she did not break the law.

Comey, summoned to testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, reiterated his finding that while Clinton and her staff were careless, she did not lie to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The hearing on Capitol Hill, which lasted four hours and 40 minutes, was marked by some tense moments, but Comey, a Republican former prosecutor, maintained his cool throughout the marathon grilling.

"As I said, I see evidence of great carelessness, but I do not see evidence that is sufficient to establish that secretary Clinton or those with whom she was corresponding both talked about classified information on e-mail and knew when they did it they were doing something that was against the law," Comey said.