James Comey’s son-in-law resigns from Justice Department minutes after indictment

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — James Comey's son-in-law resigned as a federal prosecutor Thursday minutes after the former FBI director was indicted. Troy Edwards submitted a one-sentence resignation letter to Lindsey Halligan, the acting U.S. attorney in Virginia's Eastern District, saying he was resigning “to uphold my oath to the Constitution and the country.” Edwards, the deputy chief of the National Security Section, had led a unit that handles some of the government's most sensitive espionage cases, including work tied to the Pentagon and the CIA headquarters. He was part of the team that helped convict Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

Halligan had rushed to present the case to a grand jury this week before the five-year statute of limitations expired, a move that followed the resignation of her predecessor, who had not charged Comey and had faced pressure to bring charges against another Trump target, New York Attorney General Letitia James, in a mortgage-fraud probe. Comey said Thursday that he is innocent and welcomes a trial, adding he has “great confidence in the federal judicial system.” Edwards was watching from the front row of the courtroom gallery when his wife’s father was indicted Thursday evening.

Edwards's resignation comes two months after the Justice Department fired Comey's daughter, Maurene Comey, in July. She had been a veteran prosecutor in the Southern District of New York, long regarded as one of the most elite federal prosecution offices. Popular reporting on the case noted her firing prompted a lawsuit in which she sought reinstatement, arguing the decision was political and unconstitutional.

The resignation of Edwards, who is connected through marriage to Comey, underscores the deeply intertwined nature of personnel and high-profile cases within the federal system, especially amid ongoing scrutiny of investigations connected to the Trump era. While Edwards's departure occurred in the context of the Comey indictment, prosecutors and officials familiar with the case stressed there is no indication publicly that his resignation was connected to the charges against the former FBI director. The eastern district continues to pursue the case, with Halligan leading the prosecution, and Comey maintaining his innocence as the matter proceeds toward a courtroom resolution.