The Glaring Sign James Comey And His Wife Patrice Are On The Brink Of Divorce

James Comey is currently dealing with serious legal issues, but it's quite possible that his marriage could also be in trouble. In case you didn't know, Comey, the former director of the FBI — one of many people who can't stand Donald Trump — was indicted on two charges (making false statements and obstruction of justice) while addressing the Senate in 2020, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, per BBC. About his indictment, which was spearheaded by Trump, Comey had this to say: "My family and I have known for years that there are costs to standing up to Donald Trump." He continued, "We will not live on our knees, and you shouldn't either. And, I am innocent. So, let's have a trial."

Comey's latest legal trouble arrived several months after he was questioned by the secret service for a photo shared to his Instagram. In May 2025, Comey posted a photo of shells spelling out the numbers 8647, which Trump's supporters claimed was a secret call to harm President Donald Trump, according to BBC. To explain, 86 is a slang term often mean to dispose of something, and Trump is obviously the 47th president. Ultimately, Comey was released without incident after alleging that he didn't know what the message meant, though Trump maintained otherwise. Now, as Comey faces more legal trouble, he's revealed the role his wife played in the ordeal, suggesting trouble in paradise.

Comey seemingly threw his wife, Patrice Comey, under the bus by claiming that she was the one who encouraged him to post the message. "We stood over it and I said, 'I think it's some kind of political message.' She said, '86, when I was a server it meant to remove an item from the menu when you ran out of ingredients,'" James shared (via The Daily Beast). "To me, as a kid, it always meant to leave a place, to ditch a place." Then came his wife's suggestion, "She said, 'You should take a picture of that, And I did, I posted it on my Instagram account and thought nothing more of it."

Additionally, Comey's job as the FBI's director made things difficult. "The rules are, if you're dealing with a classified matter, you may only discuss it with someone who has a need to know it, a work related need, and the appropriate clearance," he explained during an ABC News interview in 2018. Unfortunately, James' wife, Patrice, didn't fall into any of those categories, which meant that he had to keep her in the dark about much of his work. "She didn't have a need to know anything about the classified topics I worked on," he continued. Despite these facts, James made sure to tout that Patrice was incredibly trustworthy.

It's unknown if James' job ever impacted their marriage negatively, but the secretiveness probably didn't help. Hopefully, they're not actually added to the list of folks who are divorcing in 2025, but, you never know.