[BUG] Claude Code crashes when saving project memory with "File has not been read yet" error

Environment

• Platform (select one):
• [ ] Anthropic API
• [ ] AWS Bedrock
• [ ] Google Vertex AI
• [x] Other: Claude CLI (Claude Code)
• Claude CLI version: v1.0.35
• Operating System: macOS (M4 MacBook Pro)
• Terminal: <!-- Terminal used -->

Bug Description

Claude Code crashes with "Error: File has not been read yet. Read it first before writing to it." when using memory commands (starting with # ) in the terminal. The application terminates unexpectedly after displaying a stack trace.

Steps to Reproduce

1. Open Claude Code in terminal
2. Execute a memory command using the format # memory test crash!!!
3. When prompted "Where should this memory be saved?", select either:

• Option 1 (Project memory - ./CLAUDE.md) OR
• Option 2 (Project memory (local) - ./CLAUDE.local.md)

1. Wait for the "Saving project memory..." process to start
2. Application crashes with the error stack trace

Note: Option 3 (User memory - ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md) works correctly without any issues.

Expected Behavior

The memory command should be processed successfully and project memory should be saved to the selected project memory file (./CLAUDE.md or ./CLAUDE.local.md) without crashing the application, similar to how user memory (Option 3) works correctly.

Actual Behavior

The application crashes with the following error:

Error: File has not been read yet. Read it first before writing to it.
    at file:///opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/@anthropic-ai/claude-code/cli.js:1920:1009
    at process.processTicksAndRejections (node:internal/process/task_queues:105:5)
    at async I (file:///opt/homebrew/lib/node_modules/@anthropic-ai/claude-code/cli.js:622:14088)

Node.js v24.2.0

Additional Context

• Hardware: M4 MacBook Pro
• Node.js version: v24.2.0
• Claude Code version: v1.0.35
• The crash occurs specifically when using memory commands (commands starting with #)
• Issue is isolated to project-level memory options only:
• ❌ Option 1: ./CLAUDE.md (Project memory) - CRASHES
• ❌ Option 2: ./CLAUDE.local.md (Project memory local) - CRASHES
• ✅ Option 3: ~/.claude/CLAUDE.md (User memory) - WORKS CORRECTLY
• The error suggests a file I/O issue where the application attempts to write to project memory files that haven't been read first
• The error occurs in the memory saving functionality (Saving project memory... was displayed before crash)
• Stack trace indicates the issue is in the CLI tool's file handling logic at line 1920
• This appears to be a systematic issue with project-level memory file handling, while user-level memory handling works correctly
• The bug suggests different code paths are used for project vs user memory, with the project memory path having a file read/write order issue