- James Comey was charged in April with threatening President Donald Trump through a photo posted on Instagram in May 2025.
- Comey's lawyers allege that the Justice Department conducted unlawful surveillance and coordinated with Trump.
- The Justice Department is accused of using the Secret Service and FBI to bolster its case against Comey, including interviewing notorious mobster Sammy Gravano.
- Comey's lawyers claim that the case is a vindictive and selective prosecution, alleging misconduct in the Justice Department's actions.
- The Justice Department argues that the Instagram photo constituted a threat against Trump, interpreting the number 86 as shorthand for kill.
- Comey deleted the Instagram post shortly after posting, stating he was unaware that anyone interpreted the numbers as a call to violence.
- Comey's lawyers allege that unlawful electronic surveillance was conducted by the Secret Service without a warrant during a visit to their son's grave.
- The request for surveillance was made at the behest of a senior Justice Department official.
- Comey's lawyers claim that the Secret Service closely coordinated with the Justice Department and Trump regarding Comey's interview.
- Comey's lawyers argue that there is ample objective evidence showing that Trump's animus towards Comey led to this prosecution.
- Defense lawyers stated that investigators went to extraordinary lengths to prove Comey's intent to threaten but found no evidence.
- An FBI agent's review of the case against mobster John Gotti found no references to the term 86.
- Investigators interviewed Salvatore Gravano, who did not recall discussing the term 86 with Comey.
- The FBI's internal database search for any association between Comey and the term 86 yielded inconclusive results.
- Claims made by Rudy Giuliani regarding Comey's connection to the term 86 were determined to be untrue by the FBI.
James Comey is fighting a case alleging he threatened Donald Trump through an Instagram post, claiming it was misinterpreted. His lawyers assert the prosecution is politically motivated, citing unlawful surveillance and misconduct by the Justice Department during the investigation.12357
Comey was charged in April after posting a photo of seashells arranged in the numbers "86 47," which the Justice Department interpreted as a threat, with "86" being shorthand for "kill." Comey deleted the post, stating he was unaware of any violent connotation.
His legal team argues that the investigation involved extraordinary measures, including interviewing mobster Sammy Gravano and conducting surveillance without a warrant while Comey visited his son's grave. They claim this reflects a vindictive prosecution driven by Trump's animosity towards Comey, who was fired by Trump in 2017.4
The lawyers contend that the government failed to find evidence supporting the claim that Comey intended a threat, with investigators reportedly coming up empty. They also noted that Gravano did not recall discussing the term "86" in relation to Comey.
In their filings, Comey's lawyers stated, "Ample objective evidence... establishes that the President's animus toward Mr. Comey led to this vindictive and selective prosecution."10
“Comey's defense claims the Justice Department's actions are part of a vindictive prosecution, alleging unlawful surveillance during a visit to his son's grave. They argue that investigators failed to find evidence linking Comey to the term '86' as a threat, despite extensive efforts to prove otherwise.”
