A federal judge decided on Monday to move the arraignment for former FBI Director James Comey up one day this week because of security concerns at the courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia.
Comey was previously scheduled to appear at his arraignment on Thursday.
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“Because there are multiple previously-scheduled matters that are expected to draw large numbers of people to the courthouse at the same time as the arraignment, and because it is necessary to ensure the security of the Court, the parties, and the public, it is hereby ORDERED that Defendant is summoned to appear for arraignment before this Court on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, at 10:00 a.m.,” U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff wrote.
It remains unclear what other court cases are expected to draw large crowds on Thursday.
Last month, Comey was indicted by a federal grand jury on two felony counts for obstructing a congressional proceeding and making a false statement to Congress. Both charges stem from the former FBI director’s 2020 testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee about the bureau’s handling of the Trump-Russia investigation.
The indictment dropped days after President Donald Trump publicly pressured Attorney General Pam Bondi to use her prosecutorial authority to go after Comey, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA). Trump has frequently referred to them as his political enemies.
Comey maintains his innocence and vows to fight the allegations in court.
His arraignment will now proceed on Wednesday, with the Biden-appointed judge presiding over the case.
The scheduling change comes hours after House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-KY) withdrew Comey’s subpoena to appear for a deposition before Congress regarding the ongoing investigation of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Comey denied he knew anything about the Epstein files.
When the Epstein files debacle blew up in July, Trump accused Comey and others of making up the Epstein files. The president also blamed Comey for his involvement in what he called the “Russia hoax.”
COMEY WON’T APPEAR BEFORE HOUSE OVERSIGHT, DENIES KNOWLEDGE OF EPSTEIN FILES
Comey is accused of lying to Congress under oath about not authorizing leaks of anonymous information to the media about the investigations into Trump’s alleged collusion with Russia in the 2016 presidential election and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s alleged involvement in tying Trump to Russia.
A possible third count pertained to an alleged false statement made by Comey about whether he was aware of the “Clinton plan” to smear Trump as a Russian colluder, but that charge did not make its way into the indictment after the grand jury could not agree on it.