Former FBI Director James Comey pleaded not guilty on Wednesday during his federal court arraignment on charges brought following a public campaign by US President Donald Trump to prosecute him.Comey, who was indicted last month by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia, faces two charges: making false statements and obstruction of a congressional proceeding. The indictment followed Trump’s social media call urging attorney general Pam Bondi to charge Comey, stating, “We can’t delay any longer.”During the brief hearing, Comey’s attorney, Pat Fitzgerald, waived the reading of the indictment and requested a jury trial. Comey himself spoke only once, affirming his understanding of his rights, saying, “I do your honor, thank you very much.” A trial date was set for January 5, with an expected duration of two to three days.Comey’s legal team plans to file motions challenging the charges as a vindictive and selective prosecution, and question the appointment of Lindsey Halligan, Trump’s former personal lawyer, as the US attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Fitzgerald described Halligan’s appointment as “unlawful” and indicated they would also raise issues of “grand jury abuse” and “outrageous government conduct.”The charges stem from allegations that Comey lied to Congress about authorizing a third party to anonymously leak information regarding an FBI investigation. Comey has consistently denied the allegations, telling the Senate in 2017 and again in 2020, “I stand by the testimony.”The prosecution’s case was unusual, with Halligan, who lacks prosecutorial experience, presenting it alone to the grand jury after Trump pressured the previous acting US attorney to resign. While Halligan sought three charges, the grand jury found probable cause for two.Comey is due to appear before US district judge Michael Nachmanoff, with additional prosecutors Nathaniel Lemons and Gabriel J Diaz from a North Carolina US attorney’s office assisting in the case.Comey’s daughter, a former federal prosecutor herself, was present in court to support her father.This case is part of a broader pattern since Trump’s return to office, where he has called for charges against several political opponents, including New York attorney general Letitia James and Senator Adam Schiff.A group of former federal judges recently warned that the prosecution poses a “grave danger” to Americans’ rights, accusing Trump of “corruptly abusing the power of his office by directing the United States department of justice and the federal bureau of investigation to target his critics and his perceived political enemies.”
