SHELL GAME

Trial Over Trump Enemy’s Social Media Post Is Delayed

Prosecutors claim the former FBI director’s viral seashells photo threatened Trump.

James Comey’s criminal trial over a photo of seashells prosecutors say threatened Donald Trump has been pushed back until October. On Tuesday, a federal judge set an Oct. 21 trial date for the former FBI director, whose case stems from an Instagram photo showing seashells arranged into the numbers “8647.” Federal prosecutors allege the image amounted to “a serious expression of an intent to do harm to the President of the United States,” arguing the “86” portion referenced getting rid of Trump, the 47th president. “86” is also common restaurant slang meaning to remove or discard something. Comey’s legal team is now preparing to try to get the entire case thrown out. The trial had originally been scheduled for July but was delayed after Comey’s team requested more time, saying some of their arguments “may require extensive briefing.” Comey, fired by Trump as FBI director in 2017, has remained one of the president’s most outspoken critics. He is due to appear for arraignment on Sept. 30 in North Carolina federal court if the case survives expected motions to dismiss.