Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey will "self-surrender" today after a federal grand jury indicted him for allegedly threatening President Trump with an Instagram post.
Comey is expected to turn himself in to authorities in northern Virginia, where he’ll be booked and make his first court appearance.
CNN Correspondent Katelyn Polantz reported on the new developments as of this morning.
"He is going to be self-surrendering, and so the FBI or the US Marshals are not going to pick him up and arrest him," she revealed. "But Comey is expected to be placed under arrest."
Allow me to interject for a moment — if they end up taking his mugshot, fingerprinting him, or maybe giving him a little perp walk around the facilities, then Lordy, I hope there are tapes.
That said, allowing the man to "self-surrender" is a level of decorum amongst law enforcement that was never afforded to people like, say, a Roger Stone.
🚨 JUST IN: James Comey is expected to surrender to federal authorities TODAY, and officially be placed UNDER ARREST
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) April 29, 2026
That's when he'll get his mugshot taken and be fingerprinted.
Comey will surrender to the Eastern District of Virginia, but will have to fight this case in the… pic.twitter.com/sr7OH4ooLB
READ MORE: James Comey Indicted Again - the Reckoning Continues
Out of the Swamp: Comey Faces Arrest Warrant in NC After '86 47' Seashell Threat
Comey, as reported extensively here at RedState, was indicted on two felony counts for a May 2025 Instagram post showing seashells arranged to spell “86 47." Prosecutors are banking on the conclusion that a reasonable person would interpret the post as a threat to harm or kill President Trump.
The charges are: Knowingly and willfully making a threat against the President, and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce. Essentially, taking a picture of the seashell arrangement and then sharing them on social media for his followers to interpret as they please.
The "86" portion of the message means to "get rid of," which some believe means to remove a person through violent means. Comey insisted he had no idea what "86" meant, an impossibility considering his career path in law enforcement. Not to mention that, long before his beachcombing incident, this matter was already a very public debate in 2020, when Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer (D) had an "86 45" display on her desk.
Comey knew what he was doing. Is he going to pay the price for it?
On that note, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche forcefully defended the charges in an appearance on "CBS Mornings" earlier today. He reminded the media that threatening the life of the President is a serious federal crime passed by Congress—not some discretionary political hit job—and that no one, not even a former top cop, is above the law.
"If anybody in this country thinks — especially given what happened over the past couple of years with respect to President Trump — that it is okay for anybody to threaten the president of the United States … and then have the media or others say, well that's not serious, then we have a bigger problem than I even imagined in this country," Blanche said.
"You cannot threaten the President of the United States. That's not my decision, that's Congress's decision, in a law that they passed — and so, yes, of course this is a serious case."
.@DAGToddBlanche: "You cannot threaten the President of the United States. That's not my decision, that's Congress' decision, in a law that they passed — and so, yes, of course this is a serious case." https://t.co/zcDzOisIrm pic.twitter.com/IC9YroOhs9
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 29, 2026
The primary federal statute that Blanche is referencing is 18 U.S. Code § 871, which addresses threats to take the life of, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon the President, as well as 18 U.S.C. § 875(c), which pertains to transmitting such threats through verbal, written, or online communications (like social media posts).
Blanche insisted that he was not acting at the President's behest in this case.
There's a high likelihood this case will encounter hurdles. The statute requires the threat to be made "knowingly and willfully", something Comey has adamantly denied doing. Courts have clarified that it doesn't require proof of actual intent to carry it out, but it must be more than political hyperbole, jest, or idle talk.
However, as we've seen in recent days, months, and, in fact, years, any and all threats need to be taken seriously. Spouting off at the mouth and then pretending it's all just a joke has led to multiple attempts on the President's life. Not to mention, a fairly recent study showing the left is increasingly embracing an "assassination culture" that suggests there is justification for violence against their political opponents.
And it's being embraced because top political figures and media personalities have given every left-wing nutjob in this country a green light to act without regard for consequences in this country.
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