Former FBI Director James Comey requested a federal decide Monday to dismiss the Justice Division’s felony case in opposition to him, arguing it’s a “vindictive and selective prosecution” and US Legal professional Lindsey Halligan was appointed unlawfully.
Comey, 64, is dealing with federal costs of mendacity to Congress and obstruction of justice stemming from the long-running FBI probe into alleged collusion between President Trump’s 2016 presidential marketing campaign and Russian officers. He has pleaded not responsible to each.
However his lawyerrs claimed his proseuction is only private.
“[T]he authorities has singled out Mr. Comey for prosecution due to his protected speech and due to President Trump’s private animus towards Mr. Comey,” the ex-FBI director’s attorneys wrote in a movement to District Choose Michael Nachmanoff.
Comey’s attorneys contend that Trump “ordered” the DOJ to prosecute their consumer “due to private spite and since Mr. Comey has steadily criticized the President for his conduct in workplace.”
“When no profession prosecutor would perform these orders, the President publicly pressured the interim U.S. Legal professional to resign and directed the Legal professional Normal to effectuate ‘justice’ in opposition to Mr. Comey,” the movement continues.
Comey’s authorized staff cites Trump’s Sept. 20 Reality Social put up directed at Legal professional Normal Pam Bondi, through which the president seems to strain the AG to go after his political foes, together with the ex-FBI boss, New York Legal professional Normal Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.).
“Lower than 48 hours after President Trump’s put up, Lindsey Halligan was sworn in as interim U.S. Legal professional for this District,” the submitting notes.
Halligan, who’s referred to within the submitting as Trump’s “new hand-picked interim U.S. Legal professional,” changed former US Legal professional Erik Siebert within the Jap District of Virginia and obtained a grand jury indictment in opposition to Comey days later.
The submitting contains an appendix with 60 pages value of barbs Trump has directed at Comey for the reason that president fired him in Could 2017 to display the “real animus towards” Comey.
“He known as Mr. Comey ‘a confirmed LEAKER & LIAR’ and ‘a weak and untruthful slime ball,’ and said that Mr. Comey ‘needs to be prosecuted,’” Comey’s attorneys wrote, referring to a few of Trump earliest social media posts attacking Comey from 2018.
“In the course of the Biden presidency, Mr. Trump’s assaults on Mr. Comey had been sporadic till 2024 when Mr. Comey publicly warned through the election marketing campaign {that a} second Trump time period would have ‘severe’ implications ‘for the Justice Division and the FBI, as a result of Trump is coming for these establishments,’” they continued.
“Then-candidate Trump responded by calling Mr. Comey a corrupt liar who had perpetrated ‘[h]orrors.’”
Comey’s staff acknowledges that “dismissal of federal felony costs underneath these doctrines has been uncommon,” arguing that the explanation behind that is “as a result of for many years the DOJ has maintained the best normal of ethics, following solely the info and the legislation to find out whether or not to carry felony costs.”
The fees stem from testimony Comey gave throughout a Sept. 30, 2020 Senate Judiciary Committee listening to through which the previous FBI head denied authorizing leaks in regards to the Trump administration to media shops.
Republicans say he lied since his deputy on the FBI “publicly and repeatedly said that he leaked info to the Wall Road Journal” and that Comey “instantly authroized it.”
In a separate movement, Comey’s attorneys argue the “indictment is fatally flawed” by claiming Halligan was appointed unlawfully – and subsequently the indictment needs to be dismissed.
The submitting notes Siebert’s 120-day restrict to function interim US legal professional of the Jap District of Virginia expired on Could 21. Siebert was licensed to transcend the 120-day restrict after judges within the district unanimously agreed to retain him previous his interim appointment.
Comey’s staff contends the judges within the Jap District of Virginia ought to’ve chosen his alternative when he left his put up, not the Trump administration.
“When Mr. Siebert resigned on September 19, 2025, the district courtroom once more had the unique authority to nominate an interim U.S. Legal professional. However as an alternative of awaiting the district courtroom’s choice, the Legal professional Normal presupposed to appoint Ms. Halligan — although the 120-day interval ‘after appointment by the Legal professional Normal underneath this part’ had lengthy since expired,” the submitting states.
Comey faces as much as 5 years in jail if convicted of the 2 costs in opposition to him, making false statements and obstruction of justice.
He pleaded not responsible to each costs earlier this month.
