Sperry wrote:
“BREAKING: An FBI affidavit for a search warrant in the James Comey presidential threat case reveals his wife Patrice Comey sent him a Google screenshot of a nonviolent definition of the term “86” two (2) minutes before Comey posted the alleged threat against President Trump, indicating some forethought his posting could be construed as a threat.”
The revelation could complicate Comey’s previous explanation of the episode.
The controversy erupted after Comey shared a photograph from a beach showing seashells arranged to form the numbers “86 47.”
Comey captioned the image:
“Cool shell formation on my beach walk,” Comey said.
The number “47” was widely interpreted as a reference to President Donald Trump, the 47th president of the United States. The meaning of “86,” however, quickly became the center of a political firestorm.
The expression “86” has several recognized uses. It can mean removing, rejecting, canceling, or getting rid of something or someone. In some contexts, it has also been used as slang suggesting killing or eliminating a person.
Given Comey’s long and extraordinarily contentious history with Trump, the post immediately attracted scrutiny from Trump allies and federal authorities.
Comey subsequently maintained that he had not intended the image as a threat and said he removed the post after learning that some people interpreted the numbers as advocating violence.
But the reported communication from his wife could now become significant because of its timing.
If the affidavit is accurately characterized, investigators apparently obtained evidence suggesting the meaning of “86” was being discussed or researched within the Comey household immediately before the photograph appeared online. That does not by itself establish Comey’s intent, but it could become important evidence in determining what he understood the phrase to mean when he posted it.
The controversy carries additional political weight because Comey has been one of Trump’s most prominent adversaries since Trump’s first administration.
Comey headed the FBI during the opening stages of the investigation into alleged connections between Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia. Trump fired Comey in May 2017, setting off years of political warfare over the FBI, the Russia investigation, surveillance authorities, and the conduct of senior intelligence officials.
Trump and his supporters have repeatedly accused Comey, former CIA Director John Brennan, and other Obama-era officials of abusing federal power to target Trump. Critics of that characterization argue that describing the Russia investigation as a “coup” goes far beyond what has been legally established.
Against that history, the “86 47” episode was never going to be treated as an ordinary social-media controversy.
According to the account provided, Comey was later indicted by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina on two felony counts stemming from the post.
The first count alleges that Comey knowingly and willfully made a threat against the life of, or threatened bodily harm against, the president.
The second alleges that he transmitted through interstate or foreign commerce a communication containing a threat to kill President Trump.
Those charges are allegations, and Comey is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless prosecutors prove them beyond a reasonable doubt.
The case is also expected to turn heavily on intent — particularly whether Comey deliberately communicated a genuine threat or whether the post was an ambiguous political message that was interpreted more aggressively than he intended.
That is precisely why the newly reported text message could attract so much attention.
A Google screenshot containing a nonviolent definition of “86” would not necessarily prove Comey intended the expression violently. In fact, the defense could potentially point to the nonviolent definition for exactly the opposite argument.
Prosecutors, however, could focus on the timing and argue that it demonstrates Comey was aware the phrase carried potentially controversial implications before he decided to publish the photograph.
That distinction could become central as the case moves toward trial.
U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan, who was appointed by President George W. Bush, has reportedly agreed to move Comey’s trial to October.
For Comey, a seemingly simple photograph of seashells has now developed into something far more serious.
And if the FBI affidavit says what Sperry reports it does, investigators may have evidence showing that the meaning of “86” was being considered inside the Comey household just minutes before millions of Americans began debating exactly what “86 47” was supposed to mean.
