Highlights on James Comey | CNN

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Here’s a look into the life of James Comey, former director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Date of Birth: December 14, 1960

Place of birth: Yonkers, New York

Birth name: James Brien Comey Jr.

Dad: James Brien Comey, real estate professional

Mother: Joan (Herald) Comey

Wedding: Patrice (failure) Comey (1987–present)

Children: Collin (deceased), Abby, Claire, Brien, Kate and Maurene

Education: College of William & Mary, BS Hons, 1982; University of Chicago Law School, JD, 1985

In 1977, Comey and his younger brother were held at gunpoint at their parents’ home by a man suspected of a series of rapes in the area.

Comey worked on or oversaw many high-profile cases as a U.S. attorney and FBI director, including the prosecution of Martha Stewart in the ImClone stock-trading case, the 1996 against the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia and CIA Director David Petraeus for passing confidential information to his lover.

As a US attorney, Comey created a unit dedicated to prosecuting international drug cartels.

In college, he majored in chemistry and religion, and wrote a thesis comparing theologian Reinhold Niebuhr to televangelist Jerry Falwell.

Comey and his wife, Patrice, were adoptive parents.

Comey is six foot eight.

1987-1993 – Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

1993 – Hired by private law firm McGuire Woods.

1996 – Partner at McGuire Woods, specializing in criminal defense and commercial litigation.

1996 – Deputy Special Counsel to the Special Committee to Investigate the Whitewater Development Corporation and Related Matters, which is investigating allegations that President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, participated in a fraudulent real estate transaction.

1996-2001 – Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and Chief of the Richmond Division. While in Richmond, he was also an adjunct professor at the University of Richmond Law School.

2001 – Comey is in charge of leading the investigation into the Khobar Towers bombing, which killed 19 American servicemen.

2002-2003 – United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

2003 – Charges Martha Stewart with conspiracy, obstruction of justice and securities fraud related to the sale of ImClone Systems stock. Stewart was convicted on all counts in 2004 and sentenced to five months in prison.

2003-2005 – Deputy Attorney General under Attorney General John Ashcroft.

March 2004 – While serving as acting attorney general during Ashcroft’s hospitalization, Comey refuses to certify as legal components of a nationwide wiretapping program overseen by President George W. Bush’s administration. Comey later told a Senate Judiciary Committee that White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card Jr. and White House Counsel Alberto Gonzales had tried to get Ashcroft to approve the program since his intensive care bed.

August 2005-2010 – Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Lockheed Martin Corp.

2010-2013 – Counsel at Bridgewater Associates, a Connecticut investment firm.

2013 – Principal Investigator and Hertog Fellow at Columbia University.

July 29, 2013 – Confirmed by the US Senate as Director of the FBI by a 93-1 tally, with Senator Rand Paul as the only holdout.

September 4, 2013 – Sworn in as director of the FBI.

July 5, 2016 – Says he will not recommend charges against Hillary Clinton for her use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state. He notes, however, that Clinton and his aides were « extremely negligent » in handling classified information.

July 6, 2016 – Testifies before the House Oversight Committee on the FBI’s investigation into Clinton’s use of a private email server.

July 7, 2016 – Testifies that he was a registered Republican for most of his adult life but is « no longer registered ». He says the FBI is « resolutely apolitical ».

October 28, 2016 – Eleven days before the presidential election, Comey informs Congress in a letter that the FBI is reviewing new emails related to Clinton’s time as Secretary of State. The emails are discovered as part of an investigation of former Congressman Anthony Weiner and were sent or received by Clinton aide Huma Abedin, Weiner’s wife.

November 6, 2016 – After reviewing the newly discovered emails, Comey tells lawmakers the agency hasn’t changed its mind that Clinton shouldn’t face criminal charges. His decision comes two days before the presidential election.

January 12, 2017 – The Justice Department announces that its inspector general’s office has launched an investigation into the DOJ and the FBI’s handling, under Comey, of the investigation into Clinton’s private email server.

March 20, 2017 – During a hearing on Capitol Hill, Comey confirms that the FBI is investigating ties between Russia and members of President Donald Trump’s campaign team.

May 3, 2017 – Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Comey strongly defends his decision to alert Congress days before the 2016 election about his agency’s investigation into emails potentially linked to Clinton’s personal server, telling senators that the idea of ​​having an impact on the election made him « slightly nauseous ». he wouldn’t change what he was doing.

May 9, 2017 – Trump fires Comey after Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein recommend his removal, due to his decision to recommend that no charges be brought against Clinton and the press conference he held to explain his reasoning.

June 7, 2017 – Comey releases his written testimony regarding his interactions with Trump regarding the Russia investigation a day before his scheduled hearing before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

June 8, 2017 – Comey testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee that he believes Trump was ordering him to drop the investigation into his former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, though he also claims that Trump never explicitly told him to. TO DO. Comey also reveals that he orchestrated the leaking of the accounts of conversations with Trump because he thought it might lead to the appointment of a special prosecutor to lead the Russia investigation.

April 17, 2018 – Comey’s memoir, « A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership » is published.

November 22, 2018 – The House Judiciary Committee issues subpoenas for Comey and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch to testify privately about the FBI’s actions during the 2016 campaign. Comey tweets that he will « stand up to one thing » to behind closed doors » because I’ve seen enough of their selective leaks and distortions. Let’s hold a hearing and invite everyone to see. His attorney says Comey will challenge the order in court if necessary.

December 2, 2018 – Comey agrees to sit for a private deposition with House Republicans after filing a legal challenge to force an open hearing. “Grateful for a fair hearing from the judge. Hard to protect my rights without being looked down upon, which I don’t believe in,” Comey said in a Twitter post. « So I’ll sit in the dark, but Republicans agree that I’m free to speak when finished and the transcript will be released in 24 hours. That’s the closest I can get to public testimony.

December 7, 2018 – Comedy is interviewed by members of the House Judiciary and Oversight Committees during a closed session. He then told reporters that « we’re talking Hillary Clinton emails again, for heaven’s sake. »

July 31-August 1, 2019 – CNN and other outlets are reporting that the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General referred Comey to potential prosecution for his handling of memos that the FBI said contained classified information. But Justice Department prosecutors declined to prosecute Comey, in part because they didn’t believe there was evidence to show Comey knew and intended to violate laws about handling classified information. At issue are 2017 memos about Comey’s meetings with Trump that he shared with friend and lawyer Daniel Richman, who later shared the information with a New York Times reporter.

August 29, 2019 – The Justice Department’s inspector general releases a report, saying Comey violated FBI policy when he retained and disclosed a set of memos he wrote documenting meetings with Trump in 2017.

September 30, 2020 – Comey testifies at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, answering questions about the decision to open the Russia probe in July 2016 on the FBI’s knowledge of issues with the opposition’s research dossier on Trump and Russia that was used in Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act warrants. Comey defends the investigation as « appropriate » and « essential » and notes that it began before the case was turned over to the FBI and resulted in multiple indictments. He does, however, acknowledge problems with the FISA warrants obtained against former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page.

January 12, 2021 – Comey’s memoir, « Saving Justice: Truth, Transparency, and Trust » is published.

July 7, 2022 – The head of the Internal Revenue Service has asked a watchdog to investigate the decision to conduct rare tax audits of Comey and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the agency reports. The agency is under scrutiny following a New York Times report that the IRS conducted intensive tax audits on McCabe and Comey, both fierce critics of Trump, during his administration. The Times noted that the odds of someone being selected for audit are about one in 30,600, raising questions about how two of Trump’s most visible critics were both selected.