U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly has issued a temporary order restricting the Justice Department's access to certain evidence in its criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey. This ruling arises as the Trump administration prepares to seek a new indictment after previous charges against Comey were dismissed.

The judge's order initiates an expedited court process that may prevent critical evidence from being presented in any future proceedings against Comey. This situation stems from a legal challenge by Dan Richman, a law professor at Columbia University and a former lawyer and confidant of Comey. Richman contended that federal investigators improperly accessed his digital communications to build the case against Comey.

Richman has requested the return of his data and sought to block the Justice Department from accessing it without appropriate warrants. Judge Kollar-Kotelly agreed with Richman's claims, stating that the government likely violated his Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable searches and seizures by retaining and searching a complete copy of his personal computer without a warrant.

The court has mandated that the Justice Department identify and secure a digital image of Richman's computer, along with his email accounts and any material derived from those files. The Justice Department must certify compliance with this order by the following Monday.

The evidence collected from Richman's accounts had become a significant issue in the dismissed case against Comey. Richman characterized the Justice Department's actions as a serious infringement of his constitutional rights. This temporary restriction may also allow for further judicial scrutiny regarding potential prosecutorial errors that were not fully addressed before the dismissal of the case.

Comey had previously pleaded not guilty to charges alleging he misled Congress regarding his interactions with Richman during his 2020 testimony. The original indictment against Comey was dismissed after a ruling indicated that the search warrants used in the investigation did not authorize the seizure of evidence related to the alleged crimes. The Arctic Haze investigation, linked to national defense leaks, did not result in any criminal charges against Richman.

The Justice Department has indicated plans to appeal the ruling that invalidated the work of Lindsey Halligan, a Trump-backed lawyer who had presented the case to the grand jury, although this appeal has not yet been filed. The ruling will remain in effect until at least December 12, as the court continues to evaluate the legality of the government's retention of Richman's data.