Former FBI Director James Comey indicted for a second time
WASHINGTON (NBC, KYMA) - Former FBI Director James Comey is facing a new federal indictment over an Instagram photo he posted of seashells, spelling out what a grand jury found was a threat against President Donald Trump.
Former FBI Director Comey strongly denies the allegations and argues he's being targeted for his longstanding friction with President Trump.
Comey woke up under federal indictment once again. This time, over this post last year Comey called a cool shell formation on his beach walk. The numbers 86, often referring to "get rid of," and 47 for Trump.
A grand jury in North Carolina found comey threatened the president's life and transmitted the threat across state lines in his post.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche argued the defendant is unusual, but not the case.
"His alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never tolerate," Acting Attorney General Blanche remarked.
Comey refutes that saying he's being targeted.
"I'm still innocent, I'm still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let's go," Comey expressed.
Comey took the post down when he started facing backlash writing, "I didn't realize some folks associate those numbers with violence."
"If you're the FBI Director, and you don't know what that meant, that meant 'assassination,'" Trump spoke.
Democrats are slamming the Comey case, with Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) calling it a "weaponized Justice Department lashing out on behalf of a vengeful President."
Republicans are largely backing the move, with Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) saying, "FBI Director is a pretty big job, lots of power, abuse means more for somebody at that level."
The indictment comes less than a month after Trump fired former Attorney General Pam Bondi amid frustrations over failures to successfully prosecute his political enemies, including an unrelated federal indictment against Comey last year accusing him of lying to Congress.
A judge dismissed it, but the Justice Department is appealing.
The president and Comey have long had a contentious relationship, going back to the Russia election interference investigation.
The grand jury in this case authorized an arrest warrant, but senior law enforcement officials say conversations underway could lead to Comey turning himself in this week.
