Judge grants James Comey’s request to delay his seashell trial

(NEW YORK) — A federal judge on Tuesday granted former FBI Director James Comey’s request to delay his criminal trial for allegedly threatening to kill President Donald Trump by posting a photo of seashells.

U.S. District Judge Louise Wood Flanagan scheduled the trial to begin on Oct. 21.

The former FBI director’s arraignment is scheduled for Sept. 30. 

Prosecutors did not object to the request to delay the proceedings. 

Comey was charged with threatening to kill Trump by posting a photo on Instagram of seashells on a beach arranged in the numbers “86 47.” Citing the slang meaning of “86” as to “nix” or “get rid” of something, allies of the president allege that the post was a veiled threat against Trump, who is the 47th president.

Following backlash over the post, Comey removed the photo from Instagram and said he was unaware that the post could be associated with violence.

Critics of Trump say the indictment is another effort by the administration to punish the president’s perceived enemies after a judge last year threw out an indictment against Comey on unrelated charges.

“Well, they’re back. This time about a picture of seashells on a North Carolina Beach a year ago,” Comey said in a video posted online after the seashell indictment was unsealed. “And this won’t be the end of it, but nothing has changed with me. I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let’s go.”

At a press conference announcing the charges last month, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche argued that Comey’s post crossed the line between First Amendment-protected speech and speech that warrants prosecution. 

“It’s not a very difficult line to look at, and it’s not, in my mind, a difficult line for one to cross over, one way or the other,” Blanche said. “We cannot, you are not allowed to threaten the President of the United States of America. That’s not my decision. That’s Congress’s decision, and a statute that they passed that we charge multiple times a year.”