James Comey and His Wife, Patrice Failor, Prioritize “Laughter and Joy” After Grief

Former FBI director James Comey once handled the United States' most classified information. His job was to keep the nation safe for nearly four years until he left in 2017 after being fired by President Donald Trump during his first run as president. Years later, the two would remain at odds, with James being accused of threatening Trump's life in May 2025. The accusation came from James posting a now-deleted Instagram post of the numbers "8647," which some of the president's supporters took as him being violent.

Despite the ongoing issues with Trump and the Trump Administration, James has maintained peace and happiness in his personal life. The Yonkers, NY native is a proud husband and father. Let's meet his famiily!

James and his wife, Patrice Failor, have been married since 1987. In July 2024, he shared that the couple celebrated 37 years of marriage, which he said had consisted of plenty of lighthearted moments.

"37 years of laughter and joy," James captioned on Instagram under several photos of the couple.

Despite James's hectic, top-secret career, the pair has made their marriage work. James shared in an interview with ABC News that he and his wife had an understanding that he couldn't divulge into details about his job at home, which Patrice said worked for the better.

"I think that’s one of the things he enjoys about being home, is he’s kind of forced to turn it off, because that won’t, it won’t fly,” she explained while laughing. “And he doesn’t wanna be that at home. He really is interested in the kids and what I’m doing.”

James and Patrice met in college while attending the College of William and Mary. They have differing opinions of how they met, as the former FBI professional told his alma mater's student newspaper, The Flat Hat, that they connected after Patrice told him he should run for president at a dorm party.

According to the CT Mirror, James's wife has a master's degree in counseling and volunteered in juvenile court and is a foster care advocate, which stemmed from her and her husband's time as foster parents in Connecticut and Virginia.

James and Patrice's long-running marriage resulted in a robust family. According to CNN, the couple has six children: Abby, Claire, Brien, Kate, Maurene, and Collin. Their son, Collin, died in infancy due to an infection. James wrote in his book, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, that his son's death could've been prevented had his doctors properly treated his infection.

"I included the part about the death of our son because it had such a huge impact on how I think of the obligations of a leader," James said after telling his son's story for the first time. "I found that devastating. My wife found that devastating. And then I watched her try to channel it into accomplishing something good. I learned from watching her. I couldn't believe what she did to try and spare other mothers that pain, and it shaped me as a leader."

James and Patrice continued raising their living five children while also being active foster parents. Their daughter, , followed in her father's Law & Order footsteps and is a federal prosecutor a prosecutor in the Southern District of New York’s prestige. She had experience on Jeffrey Epstein case before his death in 2019 and also played a role in Jeffrey's former partner, Ghislane Maxwell's case. Maureen was also part of the legal team prosecuting music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs.

James also has multiple grandkids, whom he often shares on his Instagram account.