On Monday, October 20, 2025, ABC News reported that lawyers for James Comey, the former FBI director, have requested a judge to dismiss the charges against him, citing “flagrant misconduct” by prosecutors. The request was made in a sweeping 51-page filing, arguing that the indictment against Comey was the culmination of a years-long pressure campaign led by President Donald Trump. Comey’s legal team contends that this campaign violated Justice Department norms, multiple laws, and Comey’s free speech rights.
Comey was indicted last month on charges of making false statements to Congress. He pleaded not guilty earlier this month to one count of false statements and one count of obstruction of a congressional proceeding related to his testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee in 2020. Critics have characterized the prosecution as a campaign of retribution by Trump against his perceived political adversaries. However, Vice President JD Vance has stated that such prosecutions are “driven by law and not by politics.”
The filing details instances dating back to 2017 where Trump publicly called for Comey to be charged, including a social media post last month where he urged his attorney general to act “NOW!!!” to prosecute Comey and other political enemies. Comey’s attorneys argue that the subsequent installation of White House aide and insurance lawyer Lindsey Halligan to lead the prosecution, despite objections from career prosecutors, “establishes an invidious and bad faith motivation” behind the charges.
The filing asserts that Trump directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) to prosecute Comey out of personal spite and in response to Comey’s frequent criticisms of his conduct in office. It further alleges that when career prosecutors refused to carry out these orders, Trump publicly forced the interim U.S. Attorney to resign and directed the Attorney General to effectuate “justice” against Comey. Subsequently, a White House aide with no prior prosecutorial experience was installed as interim U.S. Attorney, who then indicted Comey just days before the statute of limitations was set to expire.
Comey’s attorneys have requested U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff to dismiss the case “with prejudice,” preventing the government from pursuing charges against Comey again regarding his 2020 testimony to Congress. They argue that this action is necessary to set an example against politically-motivated prosecutions sought by the Justice Department and to prevent Comey from facing a “potential perpetual state of being vindictively prosecuted.”
The attorneys argue that objective evidence demonstrates Trump directed the prosecution of Comey in retaliation for his public criticisms and to punish him out of personal spite, arguing that such a vindictive prosecution serves no legitimate government interest and contradicts fundamental constitutional values.
In addition to the motion arguing the case was vindictive, Comey’s lawyers filed a separate motion questioning the legal authority of Halligan, the acting U.S. attorney who brought the charges. The filings repeatedly cite ABC News stories detailing the turmoil within the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia leading up to Comey’s indictment, including Trump’s removal of U.S. Attorney Erik Siebert over his objections to bringing cases against the president’s enemies that career prosecutors deemed without merit.
Comey’s legal team also responded to a court filing from federal prosecutors suggesting they may seek to disqualify Comey’s lead attorney, Patrick Fitzgerald, accusing the government’s attorneys of attempting to defame Fitzgerald by implying he engaged in criminal activity. Prosecutors alleged Fitzgerald’s involvement in providing information to the media for Comey after Comey’s firing in 2017 could “inform a potential conflict and disqualification issue.”
They accused Comey of using Fitzgerald as an intermediary in 2017 to “improperly disclose classified information” related to memos Comey shared recounting his interactions with Trump. However, a DOJ inspector general investigation found “no evidence that Comey or his attorneys released any of the classified information contained in any of the Memos to the media.”
Comey’s attorneys have also raised concerns about the government’s review of evidence that could be considered privileged communications between Comey and his lawyers, calling it “unlawful.” They have asked Judge Nachmanoff to deny a request by the DOJ to expedite the review of evidence to determine which materials could be covered by privilege.
Source: ABC News
