The federal judge assigned to oversee former FBI Director James Comey’s criminal case is preparing to preside over what is expected to be one of the most closely watched trials of President Donald Trump’s second term.
U.S. District Judge Michael Nachmanoff, a Biden appointee who holds a fourth-degree black belt in Shotokan Fudokan karate—a discipline that emphasizes composure under pressure—will face intense public and political scrutiny as the proceedings unfold.
Colleagues and attorneys familiar with Nachmanoff described him in interviews with CNN as an even-tempered and disciplined jurist, well-suited to manage the high-profile nature of the Comey case and the attention it is likely to draw.
Nachmanoff, who presides in the federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia, held Comey’s arraignment on Wednesday morning. The disgraced former FBI director was indicted last month on federal charges of making false statements and obstructing a congressional proceeding, stemming from allegations that he lied to Congress during testimony in 2020.
Comey pleaded not guilty.
Throughout his career, Nachmanoff has developed a reputation as a fair and measured jurist who is highly respected within Virginia’s legal community, according to sources who spoke with CNN. Prior to his appointment to the federal district court, Nachmanoff served as a magistrate judge in the same Alexandria courthouse.
Legal professionals who have argued cases before Judge Michael Nachmanoff—both successfully and unsuccessfully—described him as a jurist who keeps his personal views private and is unlikely to heighten tensions surrounding the prosecution of Comey, a case that has already drawn significant public and political attention, CNN noted.
“I would call him an apolitical judge,” Kevin Carroll, a Virginia attorney who earlier this year unsuccessfully sought an emergency court order from Judge Nachmanoff to temporarily reinstate his client, a CIA physician who alleged she was forced out of her position under pressure from conservative officials, told CNN.
“The judge hasn’t brought politics into it at all,” Carroll added. “It’s just been straight legal discussion.”
Robert Jenkins, a white-collar defense attorney who has brought clients before Nachmanoff, said the judge “is committed to getting things right and making sure that justice is served.”
“When I learned about the case being assigned to him, I had a great sense that if this is just a politically motivated prosecution, he will discover the right way to deal with it, to make sure that justice is served,” Jenkins added.
By comparison, Jenkins added, “If there is some true merit to the allegations contained in the indictment, I think he will do likewise, because he is fair and committed to doing the right thing.”
The indictment was returned by a grand jury in Washington, D.C., a city that is overwhelmingly Democratic.
Nachmanoff was among Biden’s first judicial nominees, earning bipartisan support in the Senate. He was confirmed to a lifetime appointment in 2021, with three Republican senators joining Democrats in backing his nomination.
Since taking the bench, Nachmanoff has maintained a relatively low public profile while presiding over several notable cases. In addition to overseeing a lawsuit involving a CIA physician who alleged she was forced out of her position, he presided over a 2024 jury trial that led to the conviction of a former health care worker accused of illegally accessing the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s medical records.
Earlier in his judicial career, while serving as a magistrate judge, Nachmanoff also played a peripheral role in one of the major legal sagas of former President Trump’s first term.
In 2019, he oversaw the initial court appearances for Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, associates of Trump ally Rudy Giuliani who were charged with campaign finance violations. Nachmanoff ordered both men released on $1 million secured bonds, CNN reported.