Dorothy

Comey deleted the photo after the uproar, saying he didn’t know that it could be interpreted as a violent threat. “It never occurred to me, but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down,” he said.

After the Instagram post provoked an outcry, according to the government’s filings, Comey’s publishing agent observed in a text message to him that he had “gone viral.” Comey responded that that was “not my intention, but I’ll be OK if it sells books.” The agent replied, ”Music to an agent’s ears.”

After the Instagram post provoked an outcry, according to the government’s filings, Comey’s publishing agent observed in a text message to him that he had “gone viral.” Comey responded that that was “not my intention, but I’ll be OK if it sells books.” The agent replied, ”Music to an agent’s ears.”

The government also linked the post to publicity for Comey’s then-forthcoming novel. According to the filing, Comey told his publishing agent he would be “OK if it sells books” after the image went viral.

Comey’s lawyers contend that investigators in the case misled judges, submitted documents containing false statements, withheld key facts and repeatedly came up empty in their efforts to prove that Comey intended a physical threat or knew that the number 86 could suggest violence.

Comey’s lawyers contend that investigators in the case misled judges, submitted documents containing false statements, withheld key facts and repeatedly came up empty in their efforts to prove that Comey intended a physical threat or knew that the number 86 could suggest violence.

Comey’s lawyers say the post was protected political speech and that investigators failed to establish he intended violence. They also accuse investigators of misleading judges, withholding relevant facts, and omitting evidence that undercut the government’s theory.

Comey has denied the charges against him and his lawyers have asked the judge to dismiss the case, arguing that the post was protected speech and did not amount to a “true threat” against the president.

Last year, the justice department also indicted Comey in a separate case, alleging that he had lied to Congress. But those charges were later thrown out after a judge ruled the prosecutor handling the case was unlawfully appointed.

Comey’s lawyers have called the indictment, the second in a year against him, part of a Trump retribution campaign targeting one of the president’s vocal critics. Trump fired Comey as head of the FBI in 2017 as Comey was overseeing an investigation into potential ties between the Republican’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, and Trump since then has called for him and other perceived adversaries to be jailed.

Comey’s lawyers have called the indictment, the second in a year against him, part of a Trump retribution campaign targeting one of the president’s vocal critics. Trump fired Comey as head of the FBI in 2017 as Comey was overseeing an investigation into potential ties between the Republican’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia, and Trump since then has called for him and other perceived adversaries to be jailed.

Trump has long feuded with Comey since his handling of the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election while he was FBI director.