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Wayne Unger, Associate Professor of Law, Quinnipiac University

James Comey’s Instagram seashell post sits in a murky legal zone between protected political speech and criminal threat

Did James Comey, former FBI director, 'knowingly and willfully' threaten, kidnap or 'inflict bodily injury upon the President of the United States'? Samuel Corum/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images

In the case of United States v. James Brien Comey Jr., the U.S. president’s security is pitted against the bedrock right to free speech enjoyed by Americans.

Two federal charges have been lodged against former FBI Director James Comey and are based on his Instagram post that depicted seashells spelling out “86 47.”

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