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The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed charges against former FBI Director James Comey, alleging that an image he shared on social media of seashells arranged in the shape of two numbers amounted to “serious expression of an intent to do harm to the President.”

Comey posted the picture in May 2025, displaying shells he found on a beach during his family vacation. The shells made out the numbers “86” and “47.”

The “47” alludes to Donald Trump, as he is currently the 47th president of the United States. The meaning behind “86” is up for debate, with the administration alleging that it demonstrated a desire by Comey for Trump to be harmed.

That number, however, has historically meant to “throw out,” “get rid of,” or “refuse service to” items or people, according to Merriam-Webster Dictionary. It is a common phrase at restaurants, for example, to indicate to staff that a menu item is no longer available for a particular day.

Some people interpret the number to mean “kill.” When social media users commented on Comey’s post questioning if that was his intended meaning, he immediately deleted the post, and explained in a subsequent post that that wasn’t his intent.

Critics Call Former FBI Director James Comey’s Indictment a “Vengeance Campaign”

“It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind, so I took the post down,” Comey wrote.

Nevertheless, the DOJ secured a grand jury indictment listing two charges against Comey — one alleging he violated federal law by making a direct threat against the president’s life, and the other regarding his transmitting such a threat over state lines via social media.

The department alleges that Comey “knowingly and willfully made a threat to take the life of, and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States,” and that he “consciously disregarded a substantial risk that his communication........

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