Trump's Trials - 'There's no crime here': Legal experts weigh in on DOJ's indictment of James Comey

Episode Date: May 1, 2026

Legal experts say the indictment against former FBI Director James Comey lacks evidence of a true criminal threat. NPR's Carrie Johnson reports.Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

It's Trump's terms from NPR. I'm Scott Detrow. Every episode, we bring you a story from NPR's recent coverage of the 47th president, with a focus on ways he's using power like no president before him. Here is the latest from NPR. From NPR News, I'm Michelle Martin. Former FBI director James Comey is just beginning to launch his defense against felony charges that accuse him of threatening President Trump,

but he is already winning support from some surprise. rising quarters. And Pierce Carrie Johnson reports. The Justice Department took nearly a year to determine an Instagram post by James Comey of shells arranged on a North Carolina beach amounted to a true threat. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. Threatening the life of the President of the United States will never be tolerated by the Department of Justice. Court papers describe the threat as an image of the numbers 8647. 86 is slang for get rid of and 47 is a reference to America. America's 47th president. Trump addressed the case this week. They know 86. You know what 80s? It's a mob term for kill them. You know, you ever see the

movies? 86 them. But there are hundreds of examples of people using 86 to cancel restaurant orders or evict patrons from bars. Comey says he's innocent and has faith in the independent courts. He quickly deleted the post last year and said he didn't know the numbers might have a connection to violence. Conservative legal analyst Andrew Napolitano told Newsmax this week he reluctantly agreed with Comey. I don't think this case will ever see a jury. There's no crime here under several Supreme Court opinions. One of those cases is Watts v. United States, where the Supreme Court overturned the conviction of a Vietnam war protester who said if they ever make me carry a rifle, the first man I want to get in my sights is LBJ. Aaron Turr worked.

at the Free Speech Group called fire. And even though that statement explicitly referenced shooting President Lyndon Johnson, the court held that was just crude political rhetoric. It wasn't a true threat. TUR says to win against Jim Comey, prosecutors will need to prove he knew the post was a threat, and there's no evidence of that in the public record. Andrew Napolitano, the conservative analysts, said this week the Justice Department charges seem more like an act of vengeance against a Trump critic

than a legitimate prosecution. Carrie Johnson, NPR News. And before we wrap up, a thank you to our NPR Plus supporters who hear each show without sponsored messages and, of course, who help protect independent journalism. If you are not a supporter yet, you can visit plus.npr.org to find out how you can get a ton of podcast perks across dozens of NPR shows, like bonus episodes, exclusive merchandise, and more.

Again, that's plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detrow. Thanks for listening to Trump's Terms from NPR.