By Jim Thomas | Tuesday, 18 November 2025 04:28 PM EST
A federal judge in Virginia has granted the Department of Justice additional time to challenge the release of grand jury records to former FBI Director James Comey, temporarily pausing a ruling that drew sharp criticism from prosecutors and investigators in the high-profile case.
U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff intervened Monday evening to allow the Justice Department to submit formal objections before any grand jury material is handed over to Comey’s defense team. The order followed a same-day ruling by U.S. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick requiring prosecutors to provide audio and records from the hours leading up to the grand jury’s Sept. 25 indictment of Comey on two counts of obstruction and false statements tied to his 2020 congressional testimony.
In an emergency motion, prosecutors urged Nachmanoff to pause the handover, arguing that Fitzpatrick’s order “may have misinterpreted some facts” and requesting a delay until Wednesday afternoon to file objections. Comey’s lawyers were given until Friday to respond before the judge decides whether to uphold, narrow, or reject the disclosure.
Fitzpatrick’s 24-page order highlighted “a disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps,” suggesting the records could justify dismissing parts of the indictment, a remedy rarely seen in federal criminal cases. He criticized how the FBI handled attorney-client privilege in its “Arctic Haze” leak investigation, noting that agents executed four search warrants targeting Daniel Richman, Comey’s longtime friend and attorney, and that seized materials became “the cornerstone of the government’s grand jury presentation” despite one testifying agent having been exposed to potentially privileged information.
Fitzpatrick also faulted interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan for what he called “fundamental misstatements of the law” in her grand jury instructions. One redacted remark appeared to imply that Comey’s decision not to testify could be treated as a sign of guilt, which he said violated “a foundational rule of law.” Another comment “clearly suggested” jurors could assume the government had more evidence than presented at trial.
Requests for grand jury material of this scope are seldom granted, a point echoed in coverage by outlets including Reuters and The Washington Post, which described Fitzpatrick’s order as an extraordinary step to address potential “misconduct” in the Trump-era prosecution.
Conservative legal commentators have responded by accusing the magistrate of favoring a prominent Trump critic. Mike Davis, founder of the Article III Project and a Trump ally, wrote on X that “Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick, appointed by partisan DC-area Democrat judges in 2022, is going out of his way to carry water for James Comey” and that “through his highly irregular ruling” he is “grasping at straws” to claim Halligan did anything wrong.
“The Justice Department must appeal this fact-free and lawless ruling by Fitzpatrick. The Deep State protects its own,” he added. Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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