A newly surfaced court exhibit in the federal criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey has laid bare a family feud over the infamous “86 47” Instagram post, with a relative of Comey’s wife sending a blistering text that called the message “a call for violence” against President Trump.
Investigative reporter Paul Sperry shared the exhibit on social media, quoting the text sent to Patrice Comey: “I have held my tongue for a long time, but I just can’t do it anymore. You guys have really gone off the deep end over the years with your TDS. ‘86 47’ is a call for violence no matter how you spin it. You should be ashamed of yourselves. I am thoroughly embarrassed to have ever defended the absolute coward that is your husband. You and Jim are some of the least accepting, most hypocritical people I’ve had the displeasure of knowing. I hope Jim goes to jail for his crimes.”
The text, now part of the public record in Comey’s case, adds a personal dimension to the legal proceedings that have already ensnared the couple. The exhibit appears to be part of the evidence gathered by federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of North Carolina, where a grand jury indicted Comey on two felony counts related to the May 2025 post.
The Post and the Alleged Threat
Comey’s now-deleted Instagram post featured a photo of shells arranged to read “86 47” on a beach, captioned “Cool shell formation on my beach walk.” Prosecutors have alleged that “86 47” constitutes a threat to “eliminate/kill” the 47th president — Donald Trump. The indictment charges Comey with knowingly and willfully making a threat to take the life of and inflict bodily harm upon the President, as well as transmitting a communication containing a threat to kill the President across state lines.
If convicted, Comey faces up to 20 years in prison.
The new exhibit is just the latest revelation in a case that has drawn intense scrutiny. Last week, Sperry reported on an FBI affidavit revealing that Patrice Comey sent her husband a Google screenshot of a nonviolent definition of the term “86” — sent just two minutes before Comey posted the shell photo. That timing, according to the affidavit, suggests some forethought that the post could be interpreted as a threat.
Comey’s Evolving Explanations
Comey has offered shifting accounts of how the shell formation came to be. In his initial statement, he implied he had not assembled the shells himself, claiming he “just happened to stumble across” what he assumed was a political message during his beach walk. He later said he took the post down after learning that “some folks associate those numbers with violence,” adding, “I oppose violence of any kind.”
In a more detailed account, Comey described walking on the beach with his wife, who supposedly wondered why someone would “put an address in the sand.” He said his wife, drawing on her restaurant experience, suggested “86” meant removing an item from a menu when ingredients ran out. “She said well that very clever you should take a picture of that and I did and posted it on my Instagram and though nothing more of it until I heard through her that people were saying that it was a call for some sort of assassination which is crazy!” Comey said.
The FBI affidavit, however, undermines that version of events. The Google screenshot sent by Patrice Comey — showing a benign definition of “86” — was dispatched just two minutes before the post went live, indicating that the couple had already considered the term’s potential violent connotation.
Family Fallout
The newly revealed text from the relative — whose name has not been made public — paints a picture of a family divided over the couple’s conduct. The message doesn’t mince words, accusing the Comeys of hypocrisy and expressing hope that Jim Comey faces jail time.
The exhibit has not yet been formally entered into the court record, but Sperry’s disclosure has already sparked renewed debate about the case, with supporters of the prosecution pointing to the text as further evidence of the post’s threatening nature, while critics of the indictment argue it’s an overreach by federal prosecutors targeting a political figure.
Comey, who was fired by Trump in 2017, has denied any intent to threaten the president, insisting the post was an innocent mistake. His legal team has not yet commented on the new exhibit.
The case continues to unfold in federal court in North Carolina, where a trial date has not yet been set.
Source: www.thegatewaypundit.com — https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/08/relative-james-comey-sent-blistering-text-wife-patrice/