Trump Administration Files Third Criminal Charge Against James Comey

The latest charges center on a decade-old New York Times article from Comey’s tenure as FBI chief, alleging he unlawfully disclosed classified information. Unlike a grand jury indictment, the government used a criminal information—a filing by prosecutors—which legal experts suggest is a tactical maneuver to bypass an impending October 2026 statute of limitations. Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig characterized the move as bizarre, noting that such filings typically require defendant consent to extend legal deadlines.

Attorney Pat Fitzgerald, representing Comey, dismissed the allegations as meritless and noted that two previous investigations into the same 2016 article during Trump’s first term resulted in no charges. Comey has vowed to contest the case, labeling the prosecution an abuse of the Department of Justice. Meanwhile, the department, now led by Attorney General Todd Blanche, confirmed the filing as a routine measure to toll the statute of limitations in an ongoing investigation. The unsealing of these documents coincided with Judge Jesse M. Furman’s ruling that the administration violated due process when it fired Maurene Comey in July 2025.