Donald Trump’s effort to revive criminal cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James has hit another hurdle. A federal appeals court on Tuesday appeared skeptical of the Justice Department’s argument for reinstating the cases, which were previously dismissed by a lower-court judge.
Appeals court judges question the Justice Department’s bid to revive criminal cases against James Comey and Letitia James
Reuters reported that the three-judge panel focused on whether former Attorney General Pam Bondi had the legal authority to appoint Trump ally Lindsey Halligan as interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Halligan later secured the indictments against Comey and James.
Chief U.S. Circuit Judge Albert Diaz questioned the government’s interpretation of federal appointments law. He warned that it could allow the Justice Department to make a “limitless” number of temporary U.S. Attorney appointments and bypass Senate approval.
“How can that possibly be?” Diaz asked.
Circuit Judge Henry Floyd also questioned Halligan’s authority to bring the cases. “What’s different with a man on the street?” Floyd asked.
The cases were dismissed after U.S. District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie found that Bondi lacked the authority to appoint Halligan for another temporary term. Halligan, a former personal lawyer to Trump with no prior prosecutorial experience, had secured both indictments herself.
Comey was charged with allegedly lying to Congress about authorizing leaks to the media. James was charged with bank fraud for allegedly misrepresenting her use of a Virginia home. Both denied wrongdoing and said they were being targeted as part of a Trump retribution campaign.
The cases against Comey and James came after Trump named both in a September 2025 social media post and demanded that Bondi take action against them. Comey had been fired by Trump during his first term. James had successfully sued Trump and his family business for fraud.
