Justice Department Charges James Comey With Mishandling National Security Information
Federal prosecutors charged former FBI Director James Comey with leaking national defense information in 2016 and are pursuing a separate case regarding a social media post.
The United States Department of Justice filed criminal charges against James B. Comey on October 26, 2026, for the mishandling of national security information. Court papers unsealed in Federal District Court in Washington allege that the former FBI Director knowingly and willfully transmitted national defense information to an unauthorized person in early October 2016, which later appeared in a New York Times article.
Comey has vowed to fight the allegations, describing the prosecution as an "appalling abuse of the Department of Justice." His legal team argues that the matter had been previously investigated without charges and that prosecutors waited too long to act.
In a separate legal action, the Trump administration is pursuing a criminal case against Comey involving a photo of seashells he posted last year. The Justice Department interprets the image as a threat against President Trump.
