The DOJ has indicted former FBI Director James Comey over a now-deleted Instagram post showing seashells arranged to form the numbers '8647'. The indictment was filed Tuesday in a North Carolina federal court.
The government's argument hinges on slang: '86' meaning to eliminate or dispose of something, followed by '47', Trump's presidential number. The DOJ claims a reasonable recipient familiar with the circumstances would read this as a serious expression of intent to do harm. Comey posted the image last May.
What makes the full indictment worth reading is the legal threshold the DOJ must clear to turn a seashell photo into a federal threat charge. The document is public on DocumentCloud. The case will force courts to define where political symbolism ends and criminal intent begins.
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