DOJ announces Comey indictment

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche on Tuesday announced the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey over a since-deleted social media post that the Justice Department contends was a threat against President Trump’s life.

Mr. Blanche, the president’s former personal attorney, alleged that Mr. Comey “did knowingly and willfully make a threat to take the life of, and to inflict bodily harm upon, the President of the United States.”

The charges stem from an incident last year in which Mr. Comey posted a photo on social media of seashells arranged to read “86 47,” which critics said could be interpreted as a threat against the president.

“86” is a slang term meaning to “get rid of” someone or something, and Mr. Trump is the nation’s 47th president.

Mr. Comey later deleted the post and said he was unaware of any violent connotation.

“I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message,” he said in a statement at the time. “I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”

Mr. Blanche said the former FBI director’s actions were similar to other cases the Justice Department prosecutes.

“While this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the name of the defendant, his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute,” he said.

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