The Justice Department told a federal court on Aug. 19, 2026, that Attorney General Todd Blanche played no part in the decision to indict former FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) Director James Comey over a 2025 Instagram post — even as the same filing acknowledges the prosecutor who brought the case told Blanche about it the day before it went to a grand jury.
The filing was submitted in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. It is the government’s response to a motion from Comey’s lawyers asking a judge to throw out the case. It states plainly that U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle “made the decision without any influence from the Attorney General,” and that “no one ordered or even suggested” Boyle pursue the indictment. In a declaration filed alongside the government’s response, Boyle wrote that no one “ordered, directed, or pressured me or my office” to continue the investigation.
Key facts
- What happened: DOJ told a federal court Attorney General Todd Blanche had no role in deciding to indict James Comey, though he learned of the charging decision a day before the grand jury vote.
- Who decided: The filing says U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle made the charging decision without influence from the Attorney General.
- The charges: two counts under 18 U.S.C. §871 and §875(c) — threatening the president and sending a threat across state lines — each carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years if convicted.
- Where: U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
- When filed: Aug. 19, 2026.
- What’s next: arraignment was reported as scheduled for Sept. 30, 2026; jury trial is currently scheduled for Oct. 21, 2026, in New Bern, North Carolina, if the case proceeds.
Timeline
- March 2025 — Todd Blanche is confirmed by the Senate as deputy attorney general.
- May 2025 — Comey posts a photo of seashells spelling “86 47” on Instagram.
- August 2025 — Ellis Boyle is sworn in as interim U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina.
- September 2025 — Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia charge Comey with false statements and obstruction tied to his 2020 Senate testimony, in a separate case.
- November 2025 — A judge dismisses the Virginia case, ruling the prosecutor who brought it was unlawfully appointed; the Justice Department appeals.
- April 2026 — Trump removes Pam Bondi as attorney general; Blanche becomes acting attorney general.
- April 28, 2026 — A federal grand jury in North Carolina indicts Comey on two counts tied to the Instagram post.
- Early May 2026 — Blanche discusses the case in a “Meet the Press” interview.
- July 27, 2026 — Comey’s lawyers file a motion to dismiss the case.
- Aug. 8, 2026 — The Senate confirms Blanche as permanent attorney general.
- Aug. 10, 2026 — Blanche is sworn in as attorney general.
- Aug. 19, 2026 — The Justice Department files its response, saying Blanche had no role in the charging decision.
- Sept. 30, 2026 — Arraignment date, as currently scheduled.
- Oct. 21, 2026 — Jury trial set to begin in New Bern, North Carolina, if the case proceeds.
The case, in brief
Comey — the former FBI director fired by President Trump in 2017 — was indicted a second time on April 28, 2026, by a federal grand jury in North Carolina. The two counts, under 18 U.S.C. §871 and §875(c), cover threatening the president and sending a threat across state lines; each carries a maximum sentence of 10 years if convicted. The charges trace back to a May 2025 Instagram post in which Comey showed seashells arranged on a beach to spell “86 47,” captioned as a chance find on a walk. The filing says there is “no serious dispute” that the arrangement could reasonably be read as a coded threat: prosecutors say “86” is slang for eliminating someone and “47” refers to Trump as the 47th president. Comey says the shells were exactly what the caption described and denies any threat was intended; his lawyers call the government’s reading political overreach.
This is a separate case from an earlier, now-dismissed indictment. In September 2025, prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia charged Comey with false statements to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding, tied to his 2020 Senate testimony. A judge dismissed that case in November 2025 after ruling the interim U.S. attorney who brought it, Lindsey Halligan, had been unlawfully appointed. The Justice Department has appealed that dismissal. The two cases involve different prosecutors, different courts and different charges; the seashell case now moving through North Carolina is not a revival of the Virginia one.
Who decided to charge Comey
The government’s answer, laid out in the Aug. 19 filing, is that U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle made the charging decision without influence from the Attorney General. Boyle was sworn in on an interim basis in August 2025. He looked into the matter after taking the post, the filing says, and prosecutors say no one ordered or suggested that he seek an indictment.
Boyle told Blanche about the charging decision one day before the matter went to the grand jury, the filing adds — so that Blanche “would be aware of the possibility of publicity relating to the indictment.” Blanche also appeared alongside Boyle and FBI Director Kash Patel at the press conference announcing the indictment in April.
Blanche had spoken publicly about the case months before the Aug. 19 filing disclosed that he’d been told of the charging decision a day beforehand. In a “Meet the Press” interview in early May 2026, while serving as acting attorney general, he said the case was built on “a body of evidence that the grand jury collected over the series of about 11 months” and was not simply about one Instagram post. He also said the timing had nothing to do with securing the permanent attorney general nomination, telling viewers: “It’s not the government. It’s not the Department of Justice. It’s not Todd Blanche that returns an indictment against James Comey. It’s the grand jury.”
The same filing makes a separate argument: it says Comey’s post was, in part, meant to draw attention and sales for a forthcoming novel, disputing his account of a coincidental beach find. It also argues that even if a president had directed the charging decision, that kind of direction over federal prosecutors would fall within the executive’s constitutional authority. Several outlets flagged that argument as in tension with DOJ’s claim that Blanche had no role, and CNN, citing sources, reported that top officials in Blanche’s office had pushed to indict Comey over the picture for months before the indictment.
Blanche’s title has changed twice since the case began
Todd Blanche, once President Trump’s personal defense lawyer, was confirmed by the Senate as deputy attorney general in March 2025. He became acting attorney general in April 2026 after Trump removed Pam Bondi from the role. The Senate confirmed him as the permanent attorney general on Aug. 8, 2026, by a 50-49 vote, and he was sworn in two days later. As of this filing, he holds the title of Attorney General — not deputy or acting.
Comey’s defense
Comey’s lawyers filed a motion to dismiss the case on July 27, 2026. They argue the seashell post does not meet the legal standard for a “true threat” — a threat serious and specific enough that the Constitution does not protect it as speech — and that the prosecution is vindictive and selective, meaning it was brought to punish Comey for his public criticism of Trump rather than because of the evidence.
No judge has ruled on that motion as of August 20, 2026. The latest scheduling reports said the arraignment was scheduled for Sept. 30, 2026, with a jury trial currently scheduled for Oct. 21 in New Bern, North Carolina, if the case proceeds that far — dates that have already been moved once from an earlier schedule, though the record does not say why.