Politics · United States · 1 hr ago
Justice Department seeks new charges against James Comey
The Justice Department is seeking new charges against former FBI director James Comey over alleged disclosure of national defence information.
Prosecutors say Comey directed someone to share information with a newspaper in October 2016, when he led the FBI.
The filing accuses him of two Espionage Act violations, but it is not a grand jury indictment or a criminal complaint.
Prosecutors say they filed it to preserve the time limit for bringing charges while an investigation continues.
Comey denies wrongdoing, and his lawyer says the matter was investigated twice during the first Trump administration without charges being brought.
This is the third criminal case pursued against Comey, a prominent critic of President Donald Trump; an earlier case was dismissed, while another indictment over an alleged threat remains pending.
The unusual filing preserves the government’s ability to pursue charges, but the Justice Department has not said what happens next.
The Justice Department is seeking to charge former FBI Director James Comey over the alleged disclosure of national defense information in 2016.
Court records show prosecutors filed a criminal information to preserve the case before the 10-year statute of limitations expires.
Comey’s lawyers say the allegations were investigated before and that the charges are invalid and time-barred.
Comey denies wrongdoing and calls the latest effort an abuse of the Justice Department.
The case is the third criminal case brought against Comey since Trump returned to the White House, according to the reports.
- Who
- The Justice Department is seeking charges against former FBI Director James Comey.
- What
- Prosecutors allege he directed an unidentified person to disclose national defense information to a reporter. Comey denies wrongdoing.
- When
- The alleged disclosure took place in October 2016. The latest court documents were unsealed on October 26, 2026.
- Where
- The case was filed in federal court in Washington, DC.
- Why
- Prosecutors say they are pursuing the case over the alleged disclosure and filed a criminal information to preserve the statute of limitations.
The Justice Department
James Comey and his lawyers
Allegation
The Justice Department
Prosecutors allege Comey directed an unidentified person to disclose national defense information to a reporter.
James Comey and his lawyers
Comey maintains his innocence and says he did not commit the alleged crimes.
Legal basis
The Justice Department
The department says filing a criminal information to toll the statute of limitations is a recognized practice.
James Comey and his lawyers
Comey’s lawyers argue the case is invalid, time-barred and should have required an indictment within the 10-year limit.
The New York Times published an article about Yahoo assisting US email surveillance, citing two unnamed government officials.
Federal authorities began investigating the disclosure, according to Comey’s lawyers.
Prosecutor John Durham recommended no criminal charges in a classified memo, according to Comey’s lawyers.
The US attorney’s office for the District of Columbia opened a second investigation of the matter.
The second investigation closed without charges.
Court documents unsealed that showed the Justice Department had filed a criminal information against Comey.
- Alleged conduct
- Disclosure of national defense information in October 2016
- Case location
- Federal court in Washington, DC
- Statute of limitations
- 10 years
- Newspaper article
- The New York Times, October 5, 2016
- Prior investigations
- Two investigations, according to Comey’s lawyers
12 sources
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What people are saying
It would almost be funny if it weren't such an appalling abuse of the Department of Justice – one that we cannot become numb to.
Filing a criminal information to toll the statute of limitations is a widely recognized practice in federal court and has been approved by multiple Circuit Courts of Appeals.
Ten years after the article was published, the government filed an ‘information’ against Mr Comey that was not approved by a judge nor issued by a grand jury. It purports to charge Mr Comey with crimes he did not commit.
I have never heard of proceeding by information to toll the statute of limitations. Most prosecutors you have ever dealt with have never heard of that.
Posts on X
The Department filed a waiverless criminal information to toll the statute of limitations as it relates to allegations concerning former FBI Director Comey. Filing a criminal information to toll the statute of limitations is a widely recognized practice in federal court and has