MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
Former FBI Director Jim Comey is asking a judge to throw out criminal charges that he threatened President Trump. Comey says he's the target of vindictive prosecution, and he's pointing to new evidence that suggests Trump paid very close attention as federal agents built that case. NPR's Carrie Johnson has been reading the court papers, and she's on the line now to tell us what is in them. Good morning, Carrie.
CARRIE JOHNSON, BYLINE: Good morning.
MARTIN: Would you just start by reminding us how this case began?
JOHNSON: Sure. A grand jury in North Carolina this year indicted Comey for making a threat against President Trump, and that threat consisted of an Instagram post by Comey from last year, where he took a photo of seashells on the beach that spelled out the numbers 86, 47. Comey says he thought this was a clever political remark to get rid of Trump, the 47th president, and he did not mean anything violent. But the Justice Department made a federal case out of this, even though the number 86 is common slang in restaurant circles. And a different judge recently said that 86, 47 language is in the heartland of political speech protected by the First Amendment.
MARTIN: Where is this case now?
JOHNSON: Jim Comey's filed several motions this week, trying to get a judge in North Carolina to throw out this case before it ever gets to a jury. His lawyers say they've gathered a lot of evidence to suggest Comey got singled out because he's a frequent Trump critic. This is information we don't normally see at this stage before a case gets to trial. His lawyers are talking about messages from people inside the Secret Service saying the president wanted updates about interviews the FBI was conducting with Comey. They also say in legal filings the Secret Service may have unlawfully tracked Comey's movements without proper legal basis.
And Comey's lawyers say DOJ seems to have been reaching to find evidence that 86 term was used by mob figures as a cover for violence and killing. They even consulted underboss Sammy, The Bull, Gravano, who said that might be too on the nose. A legendary mob prosecutor and former judge said the idea 86 meant murder was, quote, "preposterous." This is all part of a motion to argue Comey's being singled out for a selective or a vindictive prosecution.
MARTIN: Carrie, is it hard to prove that?
JOHNSON: It's really difficult. DOJ veterans and Democrats in Congress have been criticizing the Justice Department for weaponizing the system against Trump's political foes, but there's a high bar for getting a judge to dismiss a case at this early stage. Comey would need to show he's being prosecuted simply because Trump dislikes him.
Now, that said, after a judge in Tennessee probed the inner workings of a human smuggling case against the migrant Kilmar Abrego Garcia, that judge found Abrego had been wrongfully prosecuted to retaliate against him for fighting deportation. Comey's lawyers cite that case many times in their court papers, and they're asking a judge to let them go even further behind the scenes to get information about whether prosecutors might have misled the grand jury than indicted Comey.
MARTIN: And what is the Justice Department saying?
JOHNSON: A DOJ spokesperson says Comey will have his day in court like any other defendant, and it would be unfair to the prosecution and to Comey himself to reveal any more details now. Comey's lawyers say veteran assistant U.S. attorneys in North Carolina backed away from this case, and the person who brought the indictment had minimal experience.
Now, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche told reporters in April, at the time of the indictment, that there had been a, quote, "tremendous amount of investigation," and DOJ would prove Comey's intent through witnesses and documents.
MARTIN: That is NPR's Carrie Johnson. Carrie, thank you.
JOHNSON: Thank you.
(SOUNDBITE OF BILL ORCUTT & MABE FRATTI'S "FORCED & FORCED & FORCED") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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