US Department of Justice defends prosecution of Comey over seashell post

The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has defended its prosecution of former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director James Comey after a social media post of seashells arranged in “86 47” was shared on Instagram last year.

Federal prosecutors allege the post was a coded threat against US President Donald Trump.

“There is no serious dispute that an objective viewer of Comey’s [social media] post could read it to mean ‘Kill President Trump’,” prosecutors wrote in court motions filed in federal court on Tuesday.

Prosecutors also cast doubt on Comey’s account that he is the victim of “vindictive” and “selective” prosecution and that he just happened to find the seashells in the numerical arrangement of “86 47” while walking on a beach in North Carolina.

The entry for “86” from Merriam-Webster, the dictionary used by The Associated Press, notes that its meaning is “to throw out”, “to get rid of” or “to refuse service to”. Comey’s lawyers have said that the slogan has long meant to “eject” or “to get rid of” and that it has been featured on thousands of items sold online while being periodically displayed at protests.

Trump is the 47th United States president, and prosecutors allege that the number 47 in Comey’s post referred to him.

Prosecutors further suggested that the former FBI director’s May 2025 post on Instagram was an obvious ploy to sell copies of a forthcoming novel titled FDR Drive, in which a prosecutor pursues a far-right social media personality who calls out his rivals by name and inspires his fans to commit violence against them.

Comey is charged with threatening the president and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce.