Prosecution of James Comey

On September 25, 2025, James Comey, a former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was indicted by a federal grand jury in Virginia on two counts: one charge of making a false statement to Congress, and one charge of obstructing a congressional proceeding. The charges are related to Comey's testimony during a September 30, 2020, Senate Judiciary Committee hearing about the FBI's investigation of links between Russia and the 2016 Trump presidential campaign, and he was indicted just before the five-year statute of limitations ran out. The indictment followed President Trump's removal of U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert, who had opposed bringing charges, and his installation of Lindsey Halligan, a political loyalist with no prosecutorial experience, who secured the indictment days before the statute of limitations expired.

Comey's defense argued the charges were baseless because Senator Ted Cruz's 2020 questions were ambiguous, Comey's answers were literally true, and the obstruction count fails to specify any false statements. They also allege grand-jury misconduct, including Halligan keeping jurors late, signing two indictments, and allowing improper testimony, framing the prosecution as vindictive and politically driven. Federal judges have sharply criticized the government's handling of the case, ordered the release of grand-jury materials, and reviewed whether Halligan's appointment itself was lawful. Comey pleaded not guilty.

A trial was scheduled for January 2026. The charges were dismissed without prejudice on November 24 after Halligan's appointment was ruled unlawful, but the Justice Department has announced that it intends to appeal the ruling. On December 9, the Justice Department referred to the legal dispute in a court filing as a "pending criminal investigation" and "a potential federal criminal prosecution", which has been suggested to indicate that the Department intends to seek a new indictment against Comey.