Former FBI Director James Comey faces federal judge, pleads not guilty to lying to Congress

Former FBI Director James B. Comey stood before a federal judge in Alexandria, Virginia, on Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to charges that he lied to Congress and obstructed a congressional investigation.

U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff set a Jan. 6 trial date. Mr. Comey’s attorney, Patrick Fitzgerald, and prosecutor Nathaniel Lemmons anticipated a three-day trial.

Mr. Comey, the most prominent person yet in the Trump resistance to face charges, is accused of perjury and obstruction based on Senate testimony five years ago.

A federal grand jury handed up the indictment last month, just days before the statute of limitations expired.

In the courtroom Wednesday, Mr. Fitzgerald approached the judge and said it was the honor of his life to represent Mr. Comey.

“My client enters a plea of not guilty, and my client looks forward to a jury trial,” he said.

Mr. Fitzgerald said the defense planned to file an “outrageous government conduct” motion to have the charges dismissed. He argued that President Trump, a political opponent, brought the charges unfairly and directly.

They also will seek to dismiss the case on the grounds that acting U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan’s appointment was unlawful. A different judge would hear that legal challenge.

If convicted of the two counts, Mr. Comey faces up to five years in prison.

Mr. Fitzgerald said the defense is in the dark about two unidentified people listed in the Sept. 26 indictment and is uncertain what alleged actions by Mr. Comey led to the two-count indictment.

Avoiding TV cameras, Mr. Comey arrived and departed the courthouse in the Washington suburbs through a back entrance with Mr. Fitzgerald, his son, and his daughter, Maurene Comey, a former top Justice Department lawyer recently fired by the Trump administration.

About a dozen anti-Trump protesters stood in front of the courthouse and hoisted signs with messages such as “show trial” and “this is what authoritarianism looks like.”

Shila Ward, who came from nearby Arlington, Virginia, to join the protest, said she expected a bigger crowd.

“This is my first protest ever because, honestly, I see what is happening and I’m afraid that our federal republic is being destroyed,” she said. “I was simply sad that there weren’t hundreds of people out here today.”

Mr. Comey has denied the charges and said he believes he is the victim of a political prosecution.

“I have great confidence in the federal judicial system, and I’m innocent,” Mr. Comey said in a video posted on social media last month. “So let’s have a trial. And keep the faith.”

No cameras are allowed in the courtroom.

After his arraignment, Mr. Comey was likely formally booked, requiring federal marshals to take a mugshot and fingerprints.

The charges against Mr. Comey stem from his September 2020 congressional testimony in which he told lawmakers under oath that he did not authorize leaks to media.

Ms. Halligan, whom Mr. Trump appointed to the position last month, will prosecute the case. She replaced Erik Siebert, who was pushed out after declining to seek an indictment against Mr. Comey.

It’s not clear what information Mr. Comey stands accused of leaking. Some reports suggest it involved the FBI’s investigation into the missing government emails from a server owned by presidential candidate and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Critics accuse the Trump administration of using the Justice Department to punish political opponents. Mr. Trump fired Mr. Comey from his leadership post at the FBI, and it was later learned that Mr. Comey launched a secret spy operation of Mr. Trump’s 2016 campaign based on a fake dossier of wild allegations paid for by Mrs. Clinton’s presidential campaign.

Mr. Comey is largely blamed for launching the broad investigation alleging that Mr. Trump colluded with Russia to win the White House. The flawed investigation, which showed no evidence of collusion, significantly hobbled Mr. Trump’s first term.