Former FBI Director James Comey reacts to his indictment
Former FBI Director James Comey responded to his indictment by the Trump administration via Instagram, urging voters to stay engaged.
A judge has ordered the charges against former FBI Director James Comey and New York State Attorney General Letitia James, targets of President Donald Trump, to be dropped, saying the prosecutors who secured the indictments were illegally appointed.
Senior U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Curry wrote in an opinion Monday that after the former head of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia retires, only the district court has the authority to appoint a new head of the office. Instead, Attorney General Pam Bondi sought to appoint Lindsey Harrigan, President Trump’s former personal attorney, as director. Mr. Harrigan secured indictments against Mr. Comey and Mr. James from a federal grand jury.
“We conclude that all actions attributable to Mr. Harrigan’s defective appointment, including Mr. Comey’s securing and signing of the indictment, constitute an unlawful exercise of executive power and must be set aside,” Mr. Curry said in Mr. Comey’s lawsuit.
In another opinion on the James case, Curry used nearly identical language to dismiss the charges against the New York attorney general.
Curry’s ruling that Harrigan illegally took office hinged on a law that normally allows the attorney general to appoint a U.S. attorney to fill a 120-day vacancy. According to the law, once the appointment period expires, local courts in the same region are empowered to fill the vacancy.
Mr. Siebert was appointed interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia on January 21. This means that by May 21st, 120 days have passed since the appointment.
The attorney general then lost the authority to appoint someone to fill a vacancy in the chief justice position, Curry said.
“Accordingly, we conclude that the Attorney General’s attempt to install Mr. Harrigan as interim United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia is invalid and that Mr. Harrigan has been serving in that capacity unlawfully since September 22, 2025,” Curry wrote.
Legal experts, including some Justice Department officials, had warned that the federal government’s prosecution of Comey faced serious legal challenges and could potentially lead to his removal due to questions about how the Trump administration appointed Harrigan.
In an Oct. 8 USA TODAY article, constitutional experts and Democratic lawmakers reported that Comey’s Sept. 25 indictment had a “fatal legal flaw” because the department had no legal authority to appoint Harrigan as U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
“I think the appointment is invalid, and therefore the indictment is invalid,” said Ed Whelan, who served as chief assistant attorney general for general counsel under former President George W. Bush.
Whelan said the Justice Department cannot legally appoint a second interim U.S. attorney after appointing the first, whose term has expired.
He cited Section 546(d) of Title 28, United States Code, which authorizes the Attorney General to appoint an interim U.S. attorney for a 120-day term. After that, only “the district court in such district may appoint a United States attorney until the vacancy is filled.”
– Josh Meyer
Mr. Bondi appointed Mr. Trump’s former personal attorney, Lindsey Harrigan, after the former chief of the Eastern Virginia U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eric Siebert, resigned in September. Mr. Siebert reportedly expressed skepticism about bringing charges against Mr. Comey and Mr. James.
Mr. Siebert told his colleagues in an email that he had resigned, but Mr. Trump later said he had fired Mr. Siebert.
Mr. Harrigan was appointed to the senior prosecutor’s office even though he had never been a prosecutor before. President Trump appeared to ask Bondy to install Halligan in the White House in a social media post on September 20th, which also called for charges against Comey and James.
In a post to Pam, President Trump said, “I fired (Mr. Siebert). There’s a great case going on and a lot of lawyers and legal experts are saying that. Lindsey Harrigan is a really good lawyer and I really like you.”
Within 48 hours of his posting, Bondi issued an order appointing Harrigan as interim chief.
Joyce White Vance, former U.S. attorney for Alabama, said on social media that a local district court judge will appoint an acting U.S. attorney for Eastern Virginia after Curry ruled out appointing an additional deputy to fill the seat. Currie pointed out that the right for judges to make interim appointments dates back to 1863.
Prosecutors have six months to secure new charges. However, because the statute of limitations has expired in Comey’s case, new charges may be blocked.
“The reality is that we don’t know if this problem will be resolved that quickly,” Vance said. “It’s a mess.”
Comey’s indictment had to be rushed because the statute of limitations had expired on September 30th.
Curry wrote that Bondi attempted to ratify the indictment on Oct. 31, but the statute of limitations expired on Sept. 30, making it “too late to be effective.”
“If the prior indictment is invalid, there is no legitimate stake in staying an indictment past the statute of limitations,” Curry wrote in a footnote.
Could the Justice Department continue to try new charges?
The indictment was dismissed, allowing the Justice Department to attempt to secure new charges. But it’s unclear what the department can or will do.
In Mr. Comey’s case, his lawyers have already argued that the legal deadline for filing charges has passed between the time the original indictment was finalized and now.
Comey was charged with lying to Congress and obstructing Congress while testifying before a Senate committee in 2020. Mr. James was charged with bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
The indictment against Comey was dropped five days after Trump posted on social media on September 20 that Comey, James and California Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff were “all guilty” and that delay was not an option. The president did not specify what crimes the three targets had committed. James was indicted within three weeks of posting the post.
Letitia James ‘buoyed’ by lawsuit dismissal
In a statement after the verdict, Ms James said she was “emboldened” by the victory.
“I continue to fight for New Yorkers every day, so I am not afraid to face these baseless accusations,” James said.
The Justice Department and Comey’s lawyers did not respond to requests for comment.
Mr. James’ attorney, Abby Lowell, said in a statement Monday that Mr. Trump “has taken the extreme step of making these baseless accusations on behalf of one of his supporters because a career prosecutor has refused.”
“This lawsuit was not about justice or the law, but rather targeted what Attorney General James stands for and who he challenges. We will continue to challenge further politically motivated charges through every lawful means available to us,” Rowell added.
