About this transcript: This is a full AI-generated transcript of News LIVE: Kash Patel Exposes 'Big Names' Involved In Trump Assassination Attempt — US News from Mint, published May 1, 2026. The transcript contains 32,631 words with timestamps and was generated using Whisper AI.
"Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true bill indicting Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies. Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C."
[0:00] Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true bill
[0:07] indicting Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies.
[0:12] Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm
[0:19] upon the President of the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[0:26] Count two, he knowingly and willfully transmitted an interstate and foreign commerce,
[0:35] a communication that contained a threat to kill President Trump in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[0:47] Mr. Comey will be given every form of due process all citizens are entitled to receive
[0:53] to include a trial by a jury of his peers.
[0:58] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, it doesn't matter who you are.
[1:04] We take all threat cases seriously and prosecute anyone who violates federal law,
[1:12] regardless of title or status.
[1:14] Thank you.
[1:19] Thank you.
[1:19] As you heard from the Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney,
[1:22] former FBI Director James Comey has now been indicted for two felony counts.
[1:27] While many of you may read this indictment and view this matter as a simple investigation,
[1:31] it is the farthest thing from that.
[1:32] Every single investigation this FBI and our partners at the Department of Justice undertake,
[1:37] especially those that involve the threats to harm or hurt or even kill individuals,
[1:43] whether they behold public office or civilians in our country,
[1:46] are met with the same measure of investigative prowess and tools and personnel
[1:49] in partnership with the Department of Justice as anyone else.
[1:52] As the U.S. Attorney indicated, James Comey will be afforded every matter of due process
[1:57] under the United States Constitution.
[1:59] And as the Attorney General indicated, this has been a case that's been investigated over the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[2:05] These cases take time.
[2:07] Our investigators work methodically.
[2:09] They are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters.
[2:13] They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit pursuant to the facts of the case and the law.
[2:18] They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury,
[2:22] a jury of appears in the district in which the alleged crime took place.
[2:25] And that grand jury spoke.
[2:28] And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey.
[2:32] James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the President of the United States.
[2:36] And as you all now know, shortly after posting that threat, he deleted that threat and then issued an apology.
[2:44] All of that information was presented to the grand jury.
[2:47] And Mr. Comey will have his day in court and his ability to speak to a jury of his peers.
[2:53] Thank you.
[2:56] Thank you.
[2:57] We'll just take a couple of questions.
[3:00] Mr. Attorney General, the Justice Department in this filing today also issued an arrest warrant for Mr. Comey.
[3:08] Is it your belief that he is a continued public threat?
[3:13] And is there a request also for detention that you anticipate will be made in this case?
[3:19] So the Department of Justice does not issue arrest warrants.
[3:22] Grand juries do.
[3:24] And so the grand jury returned an indictment and arrest warrant.
[3:26] I expect that there will be communication like hundreds of others do every year.
[3:38] There will be some sort of arraignment set by the judge or assigned to the magistrate judge.
[3:44] And when that happens, you'll know about it.
[3:47] This is being handled differently from the last time he was indicted.
[3:51] That's my reference.
[3:52] In this case, the Department requested an arrest warrant, right?
[3:57] Well, I don't think that it's public or clear what the Department requested.
[4:01] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[4:04] Go ahead.
[4:04] Sir, how will you prove intent when, as the director had acknowledged, Mr. Comey said he did not associate 86 with doing harm,
[4:14] and he took it down promptly, said it was political speech, not an intent to harm the president?
[4:20] Well, it's not.
[4:21] It's not.
[4:22] This case was indicted today.
[4:24] This conduct occurred about a year ago, May 15th of last year.
[4:28] There's been a tremendous amount of investigation, and how do you prove intent in any case?
[4:33] You prove intent with witnesses, with documents, with the defendant himself to the extent it's appropriate,
[4:39] and that's how we'll improve intent in this case.
[4:42] And so I think that talking about what Mr. Comey will or will not do if there's a trial, when there's a trial,
[4:50] it's very premature for me to do that today.
[4:52] General Blanche, I want to ask you a quick question about, there's a number of other different types of conduct Comey has been accused of over the past.
[5:01] One of them is abuse of FISA warrants.
[5:04] I wanted to ask if there's anything that we could, you know, talk about today in regards to that,
[5:08] but on a separate matter, if I may ask, any more updates about the ballistics forensic analysis with the shooting that happened over the weekend?
[5:15] So on the first question, no.
[5:17] There's nothing else to report about any investigations or anything involving Mr. Comey except the indictment that was returned today by the grand jury.
[5:25] I don't have anything further to talk about with the ballistics that are still being analyzed.
[5:30] And I said it yesterday, and every law enforcement member who is speaking on this issue is saying the same thing as they should,
[5:39] which is that this is an ongoing investigation with really, really smart experts trying to understand what happened in that shooting
[5:45] and where the bullets went and ended up and where the bullets came from.
[5:49] And once that is at a place where we can definitively say, to the extent we can definitively say, we will let you know.
[5:58] Director Comey posted this almost a year ago.
[6:01] Why bring this case now?
[6:02] Did you always feel like this was a strong prosecution or did something change recently?
[6:06] This investigation just didn't come now.
[6:09] It's the result of a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.
[6:14] We don't time when we bring cases around anything other than when the investigation is at a place where we should go to the grand jury.
[6:21] And that's exactly what we did in this case as well.
[6:24] As a former FBI director, you may not agree with what he did.
[6:29] Should he be able to turn himself in as a former FBI director?
[6:32] He's not a flight risk.
[6:34] I didn't say he can't turn himself in.
[6:36] So he's not under arrest right now and he may be able to work on something?
[6:38] I don't know whether he's under arrest right now.
[6:40] I'm here talking to you.
[6:41] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[6:42] I think that the way that this happens is different in every case.
[6:45] It's fact intensive.
[6:46] It depends on, you're right, who the defendant is.
[6:49] It depends on whether he has counsel.
[6:50] It depends on what the judge wants done.
[6:52] And so I don't know when the judge will schedule an initial arraignment, if that will be scheduled by the magistrate or the district court judge.
[7:01] I am sure, I don't know if you want to speak to that or if it's just something that will come up in the next coming days, you'll know when it happens.
[7:08] As far as what Mr. Comey does between now and then, I'm going to leave that up to the line prosecutors in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the FBI agents and the work that they're doing.
[7:18] I want to explain why, Director Patel, maybe you said that it's a complicated thing.
[7:22] A lot of people might think it's an easy case.
[7:24] Why did it take so long?
[7:26] I know that you guys chose to go with this now.
[7:28] But to the layman just looking at this case or layperson looking at the case, it was an Instagram post.
[7:33] He apologized.
[7:35] Why did it take so long?
[7:36] Well, I'm not going to get into the details of the investigation itself.
[7:39] But a lot of these cases, you could look at when the threats were made and when charges are brought.
[7:45] They're not easy cases.
[7:46] And so we have to, there's a communication that's sent allegedly in this case.
[7:51] And so that means that we have to look at devices.
[7:54] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[7:56] He has lawyers.
[7:57] So the extent that we're looking at materials that are potentially privileged, we have to get a wall, set up a wall, and let totally independent lawyers look at those.
[8:06] And so that doesn't happen overnight or quickly.
[8:09] And the satchel limitations of this is five years.
[8:12] We brought it in under one year.
[8:13] So that's really where we're at.
[8:15] Mr. Lee, it's clear that you don't want to talk specifics today.
[8:18] But to the American public, can you at least give us a sense of whether you have hard evidence or evidence that shows that Mr. Comey intended for President Trump to be harmed?
[8:30] And then secondarily, for critics who say, where does free speech end and an actual threat of violence begin?
[8:41] I don't know what critics say that, especially today.
[8:44] But it's not a very difficult line to look at, and it's not, in my mind, a difficult line for one to cross over one way or the other.
[8:53] We cannot.
[8:54] You are not allowed to threaten the President of the United States of America.
[8:57] That's not my decision.
[8:59] That's Congress's decision in a statute that they passed that we charge multiple times a year.
[9:04] And so whether there is a defense, as you just described, maybe.
[9:09] Maybe there is.
[9:10] But the government will have evidence.
[9:11] I am not going to talk about the evidence that we have.
[9:13] That's unfair to him.
[9:15] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[9:17] But it's enough to say that the grand jury returned an indictment.
[9:20] I'm just going to take one more question.
[9:21] Thank you, sir.
[9:22] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[9:24] Should we expect more indictments of this sort?
[9:26] For example, in 2020, Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit with 8645 on her desk in the background.
[9:32] Is that the kind of thing you would pursue?
[9:34] And then just really quickly, should Comey expect to face more charges for his role in the Russia collusion investigations?
[9:41] I'm not going to comment on other investigations involving Mr. Comey.
[9:46] He was indicted in the East District of Virginia.
[9:48] That was dismissed on procedural grounds because of the judge's finding regarding the U.S. attorney.
[9:53] So that case is under appeal.
[9:55] As far as other investigations that are happening, it would not be appropriate or fair for me to comment on that time.
[10:01] As far as other instances of threats against the president of the United States, those will be investigated.
[10:07] Every case is different.
[10:08] The facts are different.
[10:09] Who makes the threat matters?
[10:11] What the threat says matters?
[10:13] You're right.
[10:14] The question about intent matters.
[10:15] And we have to prove that.
[10:16] That's something that's our job.
[10:18] And that's something that prosecutors will have to do in front of a jury at the right time.
[10:22] But you cannot compare.
[10:23] It's not fair to the American people.
[10:25] It's not fair to the defendant.
[10:26] And it's certainly not fair to the prosecutors to compare, well, if you did it here, why didn't you do it there?
[10:32] Every case is different.
[10:34] But there's one thing that will never be different, which is that you cannot threaten to kill the president of the United States.
[10:40] Full stop.
[10:41] All right.
[10:41] Thanks a lot, guys.
[10:42] The President Trump's line of return an indictment against James Comey on two counts.
[10:49] The first count is that on or about May 15th of last year, he knowingly and willfully making a threat to take the life of and to inflict bodily harm upon the president of the United States.
[11:01] Count two, same day, May 15th, 2025, that the defendant, James Comey, knowingly and willfully transmitting in interstate commerce,
[11:10] a communication that contained a threat to kill the president of the United States.
[11:15] Both of these counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
[11:22] So I think it's fair to say that threatening the life of anybody is dangerous and potentially a crime.
[11:31] Threatening the life of the president of the United States will never be tolerated by the Department of Justice.
[11:37] Over the past year, this department has charged dozens of cases involving threats against all sorts of individuals.
[11:48] We take these seriously, every single one of them.
[11:53] For example, just today in the Northern District of Florida, there was a guilty plea from an individual who threatened multiple political leaders, including President Trump.
[12:03] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, where this case was indicted earlier today, there are multiple threats cases very similar to this one, including one where the defendant pled guilty recently to threatening former President Biden,
[12:17] another one that's scheduled to go to trial this summer, another one indicted, an individual was divided, was indicted for threatening Tom Homan.
[12:26] I say that to say that while this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the name of the defendant,
[12:36] his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute.
[12:45] I want to take a moment to thank the hardworking members of the FBI who investigated this case over the past 11 months or so,
[12:55] the United States Secret Service who also assisted in this investigation and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina,
[13:03] led by United States Attorney Ellis Boyle, who's standing to my right.
[13:09] This was an investigation that remains ongoing.
[13:12] That's been ongoing for about a year and that's all we're going to say about it today.
[13:18] I will let the U.S. Attorney Boyle speak now and then after that, Director Patel.
[13:23] Thank you.
[13:28] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[13:31] Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true bill
[13:37] indicting Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies.
[13:43] Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States
[13:51] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 8-7-1-A.
[13:57] Count two, he knowingly and willfully transmitted an interstate and foreign commerce,
[14:05] a communication that contained a threat to kill President Trump in violation of 18 U.S.C. 8-7-5-C.
[14:16] Mr. Comey will be given every form of due process all citizens are entitled to receive
[14:24] to include a trial by a jury of his peers.
[14:29] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, it doesn't matter who you are.
[14:34] We take all threat cases seriously and prosecute anyone who violates federal law, regardless of title or status.
[14:44] Thank you.
[14:49] Thank you.
[14:50] As you heard from the Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney, former FBI Director James Comey
[14:54] has now been indicted for two felony counts.
[14:57] While many of you may read this indictment and view this matter as a simple investigation,
[15:02] it is the farthest thing from that.
[15:03] Every single investigation this FBI and our partners at the Department of Justice undertake,
[15:08] especially those that involve the threats to harm or hurt or even kill individuals,
[15:13] whether they behold public office or civilians in our country,
[15:16] are met with the same measure of investigative prowess and tools and personnel
[15:20] in partnership with the Department of Justice as anyone else.
[15:23] As the U.S. Attorney indicated, James Comey will be afforded every matter of due process
[15:27] under the United States Constitution.
[15:29] And as the Attorney General indicated, this has been a case that's been investigated
[15:32] over the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[15:36] These cases take time.
[15:37] Our investigators work methodically.
[15:40] They are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters.
[15:43] They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit pursuant to the facts of the case
[15:47] and the law.
[15:49] They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury,
[15:52] a jury of appears in the district in which the alleged crime took place.
[15:56] And that grand jury spoke.
[15:58] And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey.
[16:02] James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the President of the United States.
[16:06] And as you all now know, shortly after posting that threat,
[16:11] he deleted that threat and then issued an apology.
[16:15] All of that information was presented to the grand jury.
[16:18] And Mr. Comey will have his day in court and his ability to speak to a jury of his peers.
[16:23] Thank you.
[16:27] Thank you.
[16:27] We'll just take a couple of questions.
[16:30] Mr. Attorney General, the Justice Department in this filing today
[16:35] also issued an arrest warrant for Mr. Comey.
[16:39] Is it your belief that he is a continued public threat?
[16:43] And is there a request also for detention that you anticipate will be made in this case?
[16:49] So the Department of Justice does not issue arrest warrants.
[16:53] Grand juries do.
[16:54] And so the grand jury returned an indictment and arrest warrant.
[16:56] I expect that there will be communication like hundreds of others do every year.
[17:08] There will be some sort of arraignment set by the judge or assigned to the magistrate judge.
[17:14] And when that happens, you'll know about it.
[17:17] But this is being handled differently from the last time he was indicted.
[17:22] That's my reference.
[17:22] In this case, the department requested an arrest warrant, right?
[17:27] Well, I don't think that it's public or clear what the department requested.
[17:31] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[17:34] Go ahead.
[17:34] Yes.
[17:35] Sir, how will you prove intent when, as the director had acknowledged,
[17:41] Mr. Comey said he did not associate 86 with doing harm and he took it down promptly,
[17:46] said it was political speech, not an intent to harm the president?
[17:50] Well, it's not.
[17:52] It's not.
[17:52] This case was indicted today.
[17:55] This conduct occurred about a year ago, May 15th of last year.
[17:58] There's been a tremendous amount of investigation.
[18:01] And how do you prove intent in any case?
[18:03] You prove intent with witnesses, with documents, with the defendant himself to the extent it's appropriate.
[18:09] And that's how we'll improve intent in this case.
[18:12] And so I think that talking about what Mr. Comey will or will not do if there's a trial,
[18:19] when there's a trial, it's very premature for me to do that today.
[18:22] General Blanche, I want to ask you a quick question about, there's a number of other
[18:28] different types of conduct Comey has been accused of over the past.
[18:32] One of them is abuse of FISA warrants.
[18:35] I wanted to ask if there's anything that we could talk about today in regards to that,
[18:39] but on a separate matter, if I may ask any more updates about the ballistics forensics
[18:43] analysis with the shooting that happened over the weekend.
[18:45] So on the first question, no.
[18:48] There's nothing else to report about any investigations or anything involving Mr. Comey
[18:52] except the indictment that was returned today by the grand jury.
[18:55] I don't have anything further to talk about with the ballistics that are still being analyzed.
[19:01] And I said it yesterday.
[19:03] And every law enforcement member who is speaking on this issue is saying the same thing as they
[19:09] should, which is that this is an ongoing investigation with really, really smart experts trying to
[19:13] understand what happened in that shooting and where the bullets went and ended up and
[19:18] where the bullets came from.
[19:20] And once that is at a place where we can definitively say it to the extent we can definitively say
[19:25] we will we will let you know.
[19:28] Director Comey posted this almost a year ago.
[19:31] Why bring this case now?
[19:32] Did you always feel like this was a strong prosecution or did something change recently?
[19:36] This this investigation just didn't come now.
[19:39] It's the result of of of a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.
[19:44] We don't time when we bring when we bring cases around anything other than when the
[19:48] investigation is at a place where we should go to the grand jury.
[19:51] And that's exactly what we did in this case as well.
[19:55] As a former as a former FBI director, you may not agree with what he did.
[19:59] Should he be able to turn himself in as a former FBI director?
[20:03] He's not a flight risk.
[20:04] I didn't say he can't turn himself in.
[20:06] He's not under arrest right now.
[20:08] And he may be able to.
[20:08] I don't know whether he's under arrest right now.
[20:10] I'm here talking to you.
[20:11] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[20:13] I think that the way that this happens is different in every case.
[20:16] It's fact intensive.
[20:17] It depends on who you're right, who the defendant is.
[20:19] It depends on whether he has counsel.
[20:21] It depends on what the judge wants done.
[20:23] And so I don't I don't know when the judge will schedule a an initial arraignment, if
[20:29] that will be scheduled by the magistrate or the district court judge.
[20:31] I am sure I don't know if you want to speak to that or if it's just something that will
[20:36] come up in the next coming days.
[20:37] You'll know when it happens as far as what Mr. Comey does between now and then.
[20:41] I'm going to leave that up to the line prosecutors in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the
[20:46] FBI agents and the work that they're doing.
[20:48] Why?
[20:49] Director Patel, maybe you said that it's a complicated thing.
[20:53] A lot of people might think it's an easy case.
[20:55] Why did it take so long?
[20:56] I know that you guys chose to go with this now.
[20:58] But to the layman just looking at this case or layperson looking at the case, it was an Instagram
[21:03] post.
[21:04] He apologized.
[21:05] Why did it take so long?
[21:06] Well, I'm not going to get into the details of the investigation itself.
[21:10] But a lot of these cases, you could look at when the threats were made and when charges
[21:14] are brought.
[21:15] They're not easy cases.
[21:17] And so we have to there's a communication that's sent in allegedly in this case.
[21:22] And so that means that we have to look at devices.
[21:24] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[21:26] He has lawyers.
[21:28] To the extent that we're looking at materials that are potentially privileged, we have to
[21:33] get a wall and set up a wall and let totally independent lawyers look at those.
[21:37] And so that doesn't happen overnight or quickly.
[21:40] And the satchel limitations of this is five years.
[21:42] We brought it in under one year.
[21:44] So that's really where we're at.
[21:46] Mr. Lee, it's clear that you don't want to talk specifics today.
[21:50] But to the American public, can you at least give us a sense of whether you have hard evidence
[21:54] or evidence that shows that Mr. Comey intended for President Trump to be harmed?
[22:00] And then secondarily, for critics who say, where does free speech, free speech end and
[22:07] an actual threat of violence begin?
[22:11] I don't know what critics say that, especially today.
[22:15] But it's not a very difficult line to look at.
[22:19] And it's not, in my mind, a difficult line for one to cross over one way or the other.
[22:23] We cannot.
[22:24] You are not allowed to threaten the president of the United States of America.
[22:28] That's not my decision.
[22:29] That's Congress's decision in a statute that they passed that we charge multiple times
[22:34] a year.
[22:35] And so whether whether there is a defense, as you just described, maybe, maybe there is.
[22:40] But the government will have evidence.
[22:41] I am not going to talk about the evidence that we have.
[22:43] That's unfair to him.
[22:45] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[22:47] But it's enough to say that the grand jury returned an indictment.
[22:50] I'm just going to take one more question.
[22:52] Thank you, sir.
[22:53] Mary Mark with The Daily Wire.
[22:54] Should we expect more indictments of this sort?
[22:56] For example, in 2020, Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit with 8645 on her desk in the background.
[23:03] Is that the kind of thing you would pursue?
[23:04] And then just really quickly, should Comey expect to face more charges for his role in Russia
[23:10] collusion investigations?
[23:11] I'm not going to comment on other investigations involving Mr. Comey.
[23:17] He was indicted in the East District of Virginia.
[23:19] That was dismissed on procedural grounds because of the judge's finding regarding the U.S. attorney.
[23:24] So that case is under appeal.
[23:26] As far as other investigations that are happening, it would not be appropriate or fair for me to
[23:30] comment on that time.
[23:32] As far as other incidents of threats against the President of the United States, those will
[23:36] be investigated.
[23:37] Every case is different.
[23:38] The facts are different.
[23:40] Who makes the threat matters?
[23:41] What the threat says matters?
[23:43] You're right.
[23:44] The question about intent matters.
[23:46] And we have to prove that.
[23:47] That's something that's our job.
[23:49] And that's something that prosecutors will have to do in front of a jury at the right
[23:52] time.
[23:53] But you cannot compare.
[23:54] It's not fair to the American people.
[23:55] It's not fair to the defendant.
[23:57] And it's certainly not fair to the prosecutors to compare, well, if you did it here, why didn't
[24:02] you do it there?
[24:03] Every case is different.
[24:05] But there's one thing that will never be different, which is that you cannot threaten to kill the
[24:09] President of the United States.
[24:11] Full stop.
[24:12] All right.
[24:13] Thanks a lot, guys.
[24:14] President Trump in Atlanta returned an indictment against James Comey on two counts.
[24:19] The first count is that on or about May 15th of last year, he knowingly and willfully
[24:25] making a threat to take the life of and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United
[24:31] States.
[24:32] Count two, same day, May 15th, 2025, that the defendant, James Comey, knowingly and willfully
[24:38] transmitting in interstate commerce, a communication that contained a threat to kill the President
[24:44] of the United States.
[24:45] Both of these counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
[24:52] So I think it's fair to say that threatening the life of anybody is dangerous and potentially
[25:00] a crime.
[25:02] Threatening the life of the President of the United States will never be tolerated by the
[25:07] Department of Justice.
[25:09] Over the past year, this department has charged dozens of cases involving threats against all
[25:16] sorts of individuals.
[25:18] We take these seriously, every single one of them.
[25:24] For example, just today in the Northern District of Florida, there was a guilty plea from an
[25:28] individual who threatened multiple political leaders, including President Trump.
[25:34] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, where this case was indicted earlier today,
[25:38] there are multiple threats cases very similar to this one, including one where the defendant
[25:44] pled guilty recently to threatening former President Biden, another one that's scheduled
[25:49] to go to trial this summer, another one indicted, an individual was divided, was indicted for
[25:55] threatening Tom Homan.
[25:58] I say that to say that while this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the
[26:05] name of the defendant, his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never
[26:10] tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute.
[26:16] I want to take a moment to thank the hardworking members of the FBI who investigated this case
[26:23] over the past 11 months or so, the United States Secret Service who also assisted in this
[26:28] investigation, and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina
[26:34] led by United States Attorney Ellis Boyle, who's standing to my right.
[26:39] This was an investigation that remains ongoing, that's been ongoing for about a year, and
[26:46] that's all we're going to say about it today.
[26:48] I will let the U.S. Attorney Boyle speak now, and then after that, Director Patel.
[26:54] Thank you.
[26:59] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[27:02] Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true bill
[27:08] indicting Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies.
[27:13] Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm upon
[27:20] the President of the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[27:28] Count two, he knowingly and willfully transmitted an interstate and foreign commerce, a communication
[27:37] that contained a threat to kill President Trump in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[27:47] Mr. Comey will be given every form of due process all citizens are entitled to receive, to include
[27:56] a trial by a jury of his peers.
[28:00] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, it doesn't matter who you are.
[28:04] We take all threat cases seriously and prosecute anyone who violates federal law, regardless
[28:13] of title or status.
[28:15] Thank you.
[28:19] Thank you.
[28:21] As you heard from the Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney, former FBI Director James
[28:24] Comey has now been indicted for two felony counts.
[28:28] While many of you may read this indictment and view this matter as a simple investigation,
[28:32] it is the farthest thing from that.
[28:34] Every single investigation this FBI and our partners at the Department of Justice undertake,
[28:38] especially those that involve the threats to harm or hurt or even kill individuals, whether
[28:43] they behold public office or civilians in our country, are met with the same measure
[28:48] of investigative prowess and tools and personnel in partnership with the Department of Justice
[28:52] as anyone else.
[28:53] As the U.S. Attorney indicated, James Comey will be afforded every matter of due process
[28:58] under the United States Constitution.
[28:59] And as the Attorney General indicated, this has been a case that's been investigated over
[29:03] the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[29:06] These cases take time.
[29:08] Our investigators work methodically.
[29:10] They are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters.
[29:14] They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit pursuant to the facts
[29:17] of the case in the law.
[29:19] They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury, a jury of appears in the district
[29:24] in which the alleged crime took place.
[29:26] And that grand jury spoke.
[29:29] And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey.
[29:32] James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the President of the United States.
[29:37] And as you all now know, shortly after posting that threat, he deleted that threat and then
[29:43] issued an apology.
[29:45] All of that information was presented to the grand jury.
[29:48] And Mr. Comey will have his day in court and his ability to speak to a jury of his peers.
[29:54] Thank you.
[29:57] Thank you.
[29:58] We'll just take a couple of questions.
[29:59] Mr. General, the Justice Department in this filing today also issued an arrest warrant for
[30:08] Mr. Comey.
[30:09] Is it your belief that he is a continued public threat?
[30:14] And is there a request also for detention that you anticipate will be made in this case?
[30:20] So the Department of Justice does not issue arrest warrants, grand juries do.
[30:24] And so the grand jury returned an indictment and arrest warrant.
[30:27] I expect that there will be communication like hundreds of others do every year.
[30:39] There will be some sort of arraignment set by the judge or assigned to the magistrate judge.
[30:44] And when that happens, you'll know about it.
[30:47] But this is being handled differently from the last time he was indicted.
[30:51] Right.
[30:52] That's my reference.
[30:53] In this case, the department requested an arrest warrant, right?
[30:57] Well, I don't think that it's public or clear what the department requested.
[31:02] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[31:04] Go ahead.
[31:05] Yes.
[31:06] Sir, how will you prove intent when, as the director had acknowledged, Mr. Comey said he
[31:12] did not associate 86 with doing harm and he took it down promptly, said it was political
[31:17] speech, not an intent to harm the president?
[31:20] Well, this case was indicted today.
[31:25] This conduct occurred about a year ago, May 15th of last year.
[31:29] There's been a tremendous amount of investigation.
[31:31] And how do you prove intent in any case?
[31:34] You prove intent with witnesses, with documents, with the defendant himself to the extent it's
[31:39] appropriate.
[31:40] And that's how we'll prove intent in this case.
[31:42] And so I think that talking about what Mr. Comey will or will not do if there's a trial,
[31:49] when there's a trial, it's not as very premature for me to do that today.
[31:54] General Blanche, I want to ask you a quick question about there's a number of other different
[31:59] types of conduct Comey has been accused of over the past.
[32:02] One of them is abuse of FISA warrants.
[32:05] I wanted to ask if there's anything that we could talk about today in regards to that.
[32:09] But on a separate matter, if I may ask, any more updates about the ballistics forensic
[32:13] analysis with the shooting that happened over the weekend?
[32:15] So on the first question, no.
[32:18] There's nothing else to report about any investigations or anything involving Mr. Comey except the
[32:23] indictment that was returned today by the grand jury.
[32:26] I don't have anything further to talk about with the ballistics that are still being analyzed.
[32:31] And I said it yesterday, and every law enforcement member who is speaking on this issue is saying
[32:38] the same thing as they should, which is that this is an ongoing investigation with really,
[32:42] really smart experts trying to understand what happened in that shooting and where the
[32:47] bullets went and ended up and where the bullets came from.
[32:50] And once that is at a place where we can definitively say, to the extent we can definitively say,
[32:56] we will we will let you know, Director Comey posted this almost a year ago.
[33:01] Why bring this case now?
[33:02] Did you always feel like this was a strong prosecution or did something change recently?
[33:07] This this investigation just didn't come now.
[33:10] It's the result of of of a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.
[33:15] We don't time when we bring when we bring cases around anything other than when the investigation
[33:19] is at a place where we should go to the grand jury.
[33:22] And that's exactly what we did in this case as well.
[33:26] As a former FBI director, you may not agree with what he did.
[33:30] Should he be able to turn himself in as a former FBI director?
[33:33] He's not a flight risk.
[33:34] I didn't say he can't turn himself in.
[33:37] He's not under arrest right now and he may be able to I don't know whether he's under
[33:40] arrest right now.
[33:41] I'm here talking to you.
[33:42] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[33:43] I think that the way that this happens is different in every case.
[33:46] It's fact intensive.
[33:47] It depends on who you're right, who the defendant is.
[33:50] It depends on whether he has counsel.
[33:51] It depends on what the judge wants done.
[33:53] And so I don't know when the judge will schedule an initial arraignment, if that will be scheduled
[34:00] by the magistrate or the district court judge.
[34:01] I am sure.
[34:02] I don't know if you want to speak to that or if it's just something that will come
[34:06] up in the next coming days, you'll know when it happens.
[34:09] As far as what Mr. Comey does between now and then, I'm going to leave that up to the
[34:13] line prosecutors in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the FBI agents and the work
[34:18] that they're doing.
[34:19] Why?
[34:20] Director Patel, maybe you said that it's a complicated thing.
[34:23] A lot of people might think it's an easy case.
[34:25] Why did it take so long?
[34:26] I know that you guys chose to go with this now.
[34:29] But to the layman just looking at this case or layperson looking at the case, it was an
[34:33] Instagram post.
[34:34] He apologized.
[34:35] Why did it take so long?
[34:36] Well, I'm not going to get into the details of the investigation itself.
[34:40] But a lot of these cases, you could look at when the threats were made and when charges
[34:45] are brought.
[34:46] They're not easy cases and so we have to, there's a communication that's sent allegedly
[34:51] in this case.
[34:52] And so that means that we have to look at devices.
[34:55] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[34:57] He has lawyers.
[34:58] So the extent that we're looking at materials that are potentially privileged, we have to
[35:03] get a wall, set up a wall and let totally independent lawyers look at those.
[35:07] And so that doesn't happen overnight or quickly.
[35:10] And the satchel limitations of this is five years.
[35:13] We brought it in under one year.
[35:14] So that's really where we're at.
[35:16] Mr. Lee, it's clear that you don't want to talk specifics today.
[35:20] But to the American public, can you at least give us a sense of whether you have hard evidence
[35:25] or evidence that shows that Mr. Comey intended for President Trump to be harmed?
[35:31] And secondarily, for critics who say, where does free speech end and an actual threat of
[35:40] violence begins?
[35:41] I don't know what critics say that, especially today.
[35:45] But it's not a very difficult line to look at.
[35:49] And it's not, in my mind, a difficult line for one to cross over one way or the other.
[35:53] We cannot.
[35:55] You are not allowed to threaten the president of the United States of America.
[35:58] That's not my decision.
[36:00] That's Congress's decision in a statute that they passed that we charge multiple times
[36:04] a year.
[36:05] And so whether whether there is a defense, as you just described, maybe, maybe there is.
[36:10] But but the government will have evidence.
[36:11] I am not going to talk about the evidence that we have.
[36:14] That's unfair to him.
[36:16] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[36:18] But it's enough to say that the grand jury returned returned an indictment.
[36:21] I'm just take one more question.
[36:22] Thank you, sir.
[36:23] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[36:24] Could we expect more indictments of this sort, for example, in 2020, Gretchen Whitmer did
[36:29] a TV hit with 8645 on her desk in the background.
[36:33] Is that the kind of thing you would pursue?
[36:35] And then just really quickly, should Comey expect to face more charges for his role in
[36:40] the Russia collusion investigations?
[36:42] I'm not going to comment on other investigations involving Mr. Comey.
[36:46] There's he's he had he was indicted in the East District of Virginia.
[36:49] That was dismissed on procedural grounds because of the the judge's finding regarding the U.S.
[36:53] attorney.
[36:54] So that case is under appeal.
[36:56] As far as other investigations that are happening, it would not be appropriate or fair for me
[37:00] to comment on that time.
[37:02] As far as other incidents of threats against the president of the United States, those will
[37:06] be investigated.
[37:08] Every case is different.
[37:09] The facts are different.
[37:10] Who makes the threat matters?
[37:12] What the threat says matters?
[37:13] You're right.
[37:14] The question about intent matters.
[37:16] And we have to prove that that's something that's our job and that's something that prosecutors
[37:20] will have to do in front of a jury at the right time.
[37:22] But you cannot compare.
[37:24] It's not fair to the American people.
[37:26] It's not fair to the defendant.
[37:27] And it's certainly not fair to to the prosecutors to compare.
[37:30] Well, if you did it here, why didn't you do it there?
[37:33] Every every case is different.
[37:35] But there's one thing that will never be different, which is that you cannot threaten to kill the
[37:40] president of the United States full stop.
[37:42] All right.
[37:43] Thanks a lot, guys.
[37:44] The president from Atlanta returned an indictment against James Comey on two counts.
[37:50] The first count is that on or about May 15th of last year, he knowingly and willfully making
[37:56] a threat to take the life of and to inflict bodily harm upon the president of the United
[38:01] States.
[38:02] Count two, same day, May 15th, 2025, that the defendant James Comey knowingly and willfully
[38:09] transmitting in interstate commerce, a communication that contained a threat to kill the president
[38:15] of the United States.
[38:16] Both of these counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years.
[38:23] So I think it's fair to say that threatening the life of anybody is dangerous and potentially
[38:30] a crime.
[38:32] Threatening the life of the president of the United States will never be tolerated by the
[38:37] Department of Justice.
[38:38] Over the past year, this department has charged dozens of cases involving threats against
[38:47] all sorts of individuals.
[38:49] We take these seriously, every single one of them.
[38:54] For example, just today in the Northern District of Florida, there was a guilty plea from an individual
[38:59] who threatened multiple political leaders, including President Trump.
[39:05] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, where this case was indicted earlier today,
[39:09] there are multiple threats cases very similar to this one, including one where the defendant
[39:15] pled guilty recently to threatening former President Biden, another one that's scheduled
[39:19] to go to trial this summer, another one indicted, an individual was divided, was indicted
[39:25] for threatening Tom Homan.
[39:28] I say that to say that while this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the
[39:35] name of the defendant, his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never
[39:41] tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute.
[39:47] I want to take a moment to thank the hardworking members of the FBI who investigated this case
[39:53] over the past 11 months or so, the United States Secret Service who also assisted in this
[39:58] investigation and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina,
[40:04] led by United States Attorney Ellis Boyle, who's standing to my right.
[40:09] This was an investigation that remains ongoing.
[40:13] That's been ongoing for about a year.
[40:16] And that's all we're going to say about it today.
[40:18] I will let the U.S. Attorney Boyle speak now and then after that, Director Patel.
[40:24] Thank you.
[40:29] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[40:32] Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true
[40:38] bill inditing Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies.
[40:43] Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm upon
[40:50] the President of the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[40:59] Count two, he knowingly and willfully transmitted an interstate and foreign commerce, a communication
[41:07] that contained a threat to kill President Trump in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[41:18] Mr. Comey will be given every form of due process all citizens are entitled to receive to include
[41:26] a trial by a jury of his peers.
[41:30] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, it doesn't matter who you are.
[41:35] We take all threat cases seriously and prosecute anyone who violates federal law, regardless
[41:43] of title or status.
[41:45] Thank you.
[41:50] Thank you.
[41:51] As you heard from the Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney, former FBI Director James
[41:54] Comey has now been indicted for two felony counts.
[41:58] While many of you may read this indictment and view this matter as a simple investigation,
[42:02] it is the farthest thing from that.
[42:04] Every single investigation this FBI and our partners at the Department of Justice undertake,
[42:08] especially those that involve the threats to harm or hurt or even kill individuals, whether
[42:14] they behold public office or civilians in our country, are met with the same measure
[42:18] of investigative prowess and tools and personnel in partnership with the Department of Justice
[42:22] as anyone else.
[42:24] As the U.S. Attorney indicated, James Comey will be afforded every matter of due process
[42:28] under the United States Constitution.
[42:30] And as the Attorney General indicated, this has been a case that's been investigated over
[42:33] the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[42:36] These cases take time.
[42:38] Our investigators work methodically.
[42:40] They are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters.
[42:44] They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit pursuant to the facts of the
[42:48] case and the law.
[42:49] They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury, a jury of appears in the district
[42:54] in which the alleged crime took place.
[42:57] And that grand jury spoke.
[42:59] And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey.
[43:03] James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the President of the United States.
[43:08] And as you all now know, shortly after posting that threat, he deleted that threat and then
[43:14] issued an apology.
[43:15] All of that information was presented to the grand jury.
[43:19] And Mr. Comey will have his day in court and his ability to speak to a jury of his peers.
[43:24] Thank you.
[43:28] Thank you.
[43:29] We'll just take a couple of questions.
[43:30] Mr. Attorney General, the Justice Department in this filing today also issued an arrest warrant
[43:38] for Mr. Comey.
[43:40] Is it your belief that he is a continued public threat?
[43:44] And is there a request also for detention that you anticipate will be made in this case?
[43:50] So the Department of Justice does not issue arrest warrants, grand juries do.
[43:55] And so the grand jury returned an indictment and arrest warrant.
[43:57] I expect that there will be communication like hundreds of others do every year.
[44:09] There will be some sort of arraignment set by the judge or assigned to the magistrate judge.
[44:15] And when that happens, you'll know about it.
[44:18] This is being handled differently from the last time he was indicted.
[44:22] That's my reference.
[44:23] In this case, the department requested an arrest warrant, right?
[44:28] Well, I don't think that it's public or clear what the department requested.
[44:32] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[44:34] Go ahead.
[44:35] Yes.
[44:37] How will you prove intent when, as the director had acknowledged, Mr. Comey said he did not associate 86 with doing harm and he took it down promptly, said it was political speech, not an intent to harm the president?
[44:51] Well, this case was indicted today.
[44:55] This conduct occurred about a year ago, May 15th of last year.
[44:59] There's been a tremendous amount of investigation.
[45:02] And how do you prove intent in any case?
[45:04] You prove intent with witnesses, with documents, with the defendant himself, to the extent it's appropriate.
[45:10] And that's how we'll prove intent in this case.
[45:13] And so I think that talking about what Mr. Comey will or will not do if there's a trial, when there's a trial, it's very premature for me to do that today.
[45:23] General Blanche, I want to ask you a quick question about, there's a number of other different types of conduct Comey has been accused of over the past.
[45:32] One of them is abuse of FISA warrants.
[45:35] I wanted to ask if there's anything that we could talk about today in regards to that, but on a separate matter, if I may ask, any more updates about the ballistics forensics analysis with the shooting that happened over the weekend?
[45:47] So on the first question, no.
[45:48] There's nothing else to report about any investigations or anything involving Mr. Comey except the indictment that was returned today by the grand jury.
[45:56] I don't have anything further to talk about with the ballistics that are still being analyzed.
[46:01] And I said it yesterday, and every law enforcement member who is speaking on this issue is saying the same thing as they should, which is that this is an ongoing investigation with really, really smart experts trying to understand what happened in that shooting
[46:16] and where the bullets went and ended up and where the bullets came from.
[46:20] And once that is at a place where we can definitively say, to the extent we can definitively say, we will let you know.
[46:29] Director Comey posted this almost a year ago.
[46:32] Why bring this case now?
[46:33] Did you always feel like this was a strong prosecution or did something change recently?
[46:37] This investigation just didn't come now.
[46:40] It's the result of a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.
[46:44] We don't time when we bring when we bring cases around anything other than when the investigation is at a place where we should go to the grand jury.
[46:52] And that's exactly what we did in this case as well.
[46:56] As a former FBI director, you may not agree with what he did.
[47:00] Should he be able to turn himself in as a former FBI director?
[47:03] He's not a flight risk.
[47:05] I didn't say he can't turn himself in.
[47:07] He's not under arrest right now.
[47:08] And he may be able to.
[47:09] I don't know whether he's under arrest right now.
[47:11] I'm here talking to you.
[47:11] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[47:13] I think that the way that this happens is different in every case.
[47:16] It's fact intensive.
[47:17] It depends on who you're right, who the defendant is.
[47:20] It depends on whether he has counsel.
[47:22] It depends on what the judge wants done.
[47:23] And so I don't I don't know when the judge will schedule a an initial arraignment, if that will be scheduled by the magistrate or the district court judge.
[47:32] I am sure I don't know if you want to speak to that or if it's just something that will come up in the next coming days.
[47:38] You'll know when it happens as far as what Mr. Comey does between now and then.
[47:42] I'm going to leave that up to the line prosecutors in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the FBI agents and the work that they're doing.
[47:50] Why director Patel, maybe you said that it's a complicated thing.
[47:53] A lot of people might think it's an easy case.
[47:55] Why did it take so long?
[47:57] I know that you guys chose to go with this now.
[47:59] But to the layman just looking at this case or layperson looking at the case, it was an Instagram post.
[48:04] He apologized. Why did it take so long?
[48:07] Well, I'm not going to get into the details of the investigation itself.
[48:10] But a lot of these cases, you could look at when the threats were made and when charges are brought.
[48:16] They're not easy cases. And so we have to there's a communication that's sent in allegedly in this case.
[48:22] And so that means that we have to look at devices.
[48:25] Mr. Comey is a lawyer. He has lawyers.
[48:28] So the extent that we're looking at materials that are potentially privileged, we have to get a wall, set up a wall and let totally independent lawyers look at those.
[48:38] And so that doesn't happen overnight or quickly.
[48:40] And the satchel limitations of this is five years.
[48:43] We brought it in under one year.
[48:44] So that's really where we're at.
[48:46] Mr. Lee, it's clear that you don't want to talk specifics today.
[48:49] But to the American public, can you at least give us a sense of whether you have hard evidence or evidence that shows that Mr. Comey intended for President Trump to be harmed?
[49:01] And then secondarily, for critics who say, where does free speech end and an actual threat of violence begin?
[49:11] I don't know what critics say that, especially today, but it's not a very difficult line to look at.
[49:19] And it's not, in my mind, a difficult line for one to cross over one way or the other.
[49:24] We cannot. You are not allowed to threaten the president of the United States of America.
[49:28] That's not my decision. That's Congress's decision in a statute that they passed that we charge multiple times a year.
[49:35] And so whether whether there is a defense, as you just described, maybe, maybe there is.
[49:41] But but the government will have evidence. I am not going to talk about the evidence that we have.
[49:44] That's unfair to him. It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[49:47] But it's enough to say that the grand jury returned returned an indictment.
[49:51] I'm just take one more question. Thank you, sir.
[49:53] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire. Should we expect more indictments of this sort?
[49:57] For example, in 2020, Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit with 8645 on her desk in the background.
[50:03] Is that the kind of thing you would pursue? And then just really quickly,
[50:06] should Comey expect to face more charges for his role in the Russia collusion investigations?
[50:12] I'm not going to comment on other investigations involving Mr. Comey.
[50:17] There's he's he had he was indicted in the East District of Virginia.
[50:19] That was dismissed on procedural grounds because of the the judge's finding regarding the U.S. attorney.
[50:24] So that's cases under appeal. As far as other investigations that are happening,
[50:29] it would not be appropriate or fair for me to comment on that time.
[50:32] As far as other incidents of threats against the president of the United States,
[50:36] those will be investigated. Every case is different. The facts are different.
[50:40] Who makes the threat matters? What the threat says matters? You're right.
[50:45] The question about intent matters. And we have to prove that that's something that's our job.
[50:49] And that's something that prosecutors will have to do in front of a jury at the right time.
[50:52] But you cannot compare. It's not fair to the American people. It's not fair to the defendant.
[50:57] And it's certainly not fair to to the prosecutors to compare. Well, if you did it here, why didn't you do it there?
[51:03] Every every case is different. But there's one thing that will never be different, which is that you cannot threaten to kill the president of the United States.
[51:11] Full stop. All right. Thanks a lot, guys.
[51:13] Thank you.
[51:14] Thank you.
[51:15] Thank you. Did President Trump Atlanta return an indictment against James Comey on two counts?
[51:20] The first count is that on or about May 15th of last year, he knowingly and willfully making a threat to take the life of
[51:27] and to inflict bodily harm upon the president of the United States.
[51:32] Count two, same day, May 15th, 2025, that the defendant, James Comey, knowingly and willfully transmitting in interstate commerce,
[51:41] a communication that contained a threat to kill the president of the United States.
[51:46] Both of these counts carry a maximum term of imprisonment of of 10 years.
[51:53] So I think it's fair to say that threatening the life of anybody is dangerous and potentially a crime.
[52:01] Threatening the life of the president of the United States will never be tolerated by the Department of Justice.
[52:09] Over the past year, this department has charged dozens of cases involving threats against all sorts of individuals.
[52:19] We take these seriously, every single one of them.
[52:23] For example, just today in the Northern District of Florida, there was a guilty plea from an individual who threatened multiple political leaders,
[52:32] including President Trump in the Eastern District of North Carolina, where this case was indicted earlier today.
[52:38] There are multiple threats cases very similar to this one, including one where the defendant pled guilty recently to threatening former President Biden.
[52:48] Another one that's scheduled to go to trial this summer.
[52:51] Another one indicted an individual was divided, was indicted for threatening Tom Homan.
[52:57] I say that to say that while this case is unique and this indictment stands out because of the name of the defendant,
[53:07] his alleged conduct is the same kind of conduct that we will never tolerate and that we will always investigate and regularly prosecute.
[53:16] I want to take a moment to thank the hardworking members of the FBI who investigated this case over the past 11 months or so,
[53:26] the United States Secret Service, who also assisted in this investigation,
[53:30] and the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina,
[53:35] led by United States Attorney Ellis Boyle, who's standing to my right.
[53:39] This was an investigation that remains ongoing, that's been ongoing for about a year,
[53:46] and that's all we're going to say about it today.
[53:49] I will let the U.S. Attorney Boyle speak now, and then after that, Director Patel.
[53:54] Thank you.
[53:59] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[54:02] Earlier today, a grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina returned a true bill
[54:08] indicting Mr. James Comey with committing two felonies.
[54:14] Count one, he knowingly and willfully made a threat to kill and to inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States
[54:22] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[54:28] Count two, he knowingly and willfully transmitted an interstate and foreign commerce,
[54:35] a communication that contained a threat to kill President Trump in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[54:48] Mr. Comey will be given every form of due process all citizens are entitled to receive
[54:55] to include a trial by a jury of his peers.
[55:00] In the Eastern District of North Carolina, it doesn't matter who you are.
[55:04] We take all threat cases seriously and prosecute anyone who violates federal law, regardless of title or status.
[55:15] Thank you.
[55:20] Thank you.
[55:21] As you heard from the Attorney General and the U.S. Attorney, former FBI Director James Comey
[55:25] has now been indicted for two felony counts.
[55:28] While many of you may read this indictment and view this matter as a simple investigation,
[55:33] it is the farthest thing from that.
[55:34] Every single investigation this FBI and our partners at the Department of Justice undertake,
[55:39] especially those that involve the threats to harm or hurt or even kill individuals,
[55:44] whether they behold public office or civilians in our country,
[55:47] are met with the same measure of investigative prowess and tools and personnel
[55:51] in partnership with the Department of Justice as anyone else.
[55:54] As the U.S. Attorney indicated, James Comey will be afforded every matter of due process
[55:58] under the United States Constitution.
[56:00] And as the Attorney General indicated, this has been a case that's been investigated over
[56:04] the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[56:07] These cases take time.
[56:09] Our investigators work methodically.
[56:11] They are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters.
[56:14] They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit pursuant to the facts of the
[56:18] case and the law.
[56:20] They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury, a jury of appears in the district
[56:25] in which the alleged crime took place.
[56:27] And that grand jury spoke.
[56:29] And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey.
[56:33] James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the President of the United States.
[56:38] And as you all now know, shortly after posting that threat, he deleted that threat
[56:43] and then issued an apology.
[56:45] All of that information was presented to the grand jury.
[56:48] And Mr. Comey will have his day in court and his ability to speak to a jury of his peers.
[56:54] Thank you.
[56:58] Thank you.
[56:58] We'll just take a couple of questions.
[57:01] Mr. Attorney General, the Justice Department in this filing today also issued an arrest warrant
[57:08] for Mr. Comey.
[57:10] Is it your belief that he is a continued public threat?
[57:13] And is there a request also for detention that you anticipate will be made in this case?
[57:21] So the Department of Justice does not issue arrest warrants.
[57:24] Grand juries do.
[57:25] And so the grand jury returned an indictment and arrest warrant.
[57:28] I expect that there will be communication like hundreds of others do every year.
[57:39] There will be some sort of arraignment set by the judge or assigned to the magistrate judge.
[57:45] And when that happens, you'll know about it.
[57:48] But this is being handled differently from the last time he was indicted.
[57:53] That's my reference.
[57:54] In this case, the Department requested an arrest warrant, right?
[57:58] Well, I don't think that it's public or clear what the Department requested.
[58:02] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[58:05] Go ahead.
[58:05] Yes.
[58:06] Sir, how will you prove intent when, as the director had acknowledged,
[58:12] Mr. Comey said he did not associate 86 with doing harm
[58:16] and he took it down promptly, said it was political speech,
[58:19] not an intent to harm the president?
[58:21] Well, it's not.
[58:23] It's not.
[58:23] This case was indicted today.
[58:26] This conduct occurred about a year ago, May 15th of last year.
[58:30] There's been a tremendous amount of investigation.
[58:32] And how do you prove intent in any case?
[58:34] You prove intent with witnesses, with documents,
[58:37] with the defendant himself, to the extent it's appropriate?
[58:41] And that's how we'll improve intent in this case.
[58:43] And so I think that talking about what Mr. Comey will or will not do
[58:49] if there's a trial, when there's a trial,
[58:51] it's very premature for me to do that today.
[58:54] General Blanche, I want to ask you a quick question about
[58:58] there's a number of other different types of conduct
[59:01] Comey has been accused of over the past.
[59:02] One of them is abuse of FISA warrants.
[59:06] I wanted to ask if there's anything that we could talk about today
[59:08] in regards to that, but on a separate matter,
[59:11] if I may ask any more updates about the ballistics forensics analysis
[59:14] with the shooting that happened over the weekend.
[59:17] So on the first question, no.
[59:19] There's nothing else to report about any investigations
[59:21] or anything involving Mr. Comey except the indictment
[59:24] that was returned today by the grand jury.
[59:26] I don't have anything further to talk about with the ballistics
[59:29] that are still being analyzed.
[59:31] And I said it yesterday,
[59:34] and every law enforcement member who is speaking on this issue
[59:38] is saying the same thing as they should,
[59:40] which is that this is an ongoing investigation
[59:42] with really, really smart experts trying to understand
[59:45] what happened in that shooting and where the bullets went and ended up
[59:49] and where the bullets came from.
[59:51] And once that is at a place where we can definitively say,
[59:55] to the extent we can definitively say,
[59:57] we will let you know.
[59:59] Director Comey posted this almost a year ago.
[1:00:02] Why bring this case now?
[1:00:03] Did you always feel like this was a strong prosecution
[1:00:05] or did something change recently?
[1:00:08] This investigation just didn't come now.
[1:00:10] It's the result of a lot of work by law enforcement over the past year.
[1:00:15] We don't time when we bring cases around anything
[1:00:18] other than when the investigation is at a place
[1:00:20] where we should go to the grand jury,
[1:00:22] and that's exactly what we did in this case as well.
[1:00:26] As a former FBI director, you may not agree with what he did.
[1:00:31] Should he be able to turn himself in as a former FBI director?
[1:00:34] He's not a flight risk.
[1:00:35] I didn't say he can't turn himself in.
[1:00:37] So he's not under arrest right now, and he may be able to work out something.
[1:00:39] I don't know whether he's under arrest right now.
[1:00:41] I'm here talking to you.
[1:00:42] The grand jury issued an arrest warrant.
[1:00:43] I think that the way that this happens is different in every case.
[1:00:47] It's fact-intensive.
[1:00:48] It depends on, you're right, who the defendant is.
[1:00:50] It depends on whether he has counsel.
[1:00:52] It depends on what the judge wants done.
[1:00:54] And so I don't know when the judge will schedule an initial arraignment,
[1:00:59] if that will be scheduled by the magistrate or the district court judge.
[1:01:02] I am sure, I don't know if you want to speak to that
[1:01:05] or if it's just something that will come up in the next coming days,
[1:01:08] you'll know when it happens.
[1:01:09] As far as what Mr. Comey does between now and then,
[1:01:13] I'm going to leave that up to the line prosecutors
[1:01:15] in the Eastern District of North Carolina,
[1:01:17] the FBI agents, and the work that they're doing.
[1:01:19] Can you explain why, Director Patel,
[1:01:22] maybe you said that it's a complicated thing.
[1:01:24] A lot of people might think it's an easy case.
[1:01:26] Why did it take so long?
[1:01:27] I know that you guys chose to go with this now,
[1:01:29] but to the layman just looking at this case,
[1:01:31] or layperson looking at the case,
[1:01:33] it was an Instagram post.
[1:01:35] He apologized.
[1:01:36] Why did it take so long?
[1:01:38] Well, I'm not going to get into the details
[1:01:39] of the investigation itself,
[1:01:41] but a lot of these cases,
[1:01:42] you could look at when the threats were made
[1:01:44] and when charges are brought.
[1:01:46] They're not easy cases.
[1:01:48] And so we have to,
[1:01:49] there's a communication that's sent allegedly in this case.
[1:01:52] And so that means that we have to look at devices.
[1:01:55] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[1:01:57] He has lawyers.
[1:01:58] So the extent that we're looking at materials
[1:02:00] that are potentially privileged,
[1:02:03] we have to get a wall, set up a wall,
[1:02:05] and let totally independent lawyers look at those.
[1:02:08] And so that doesn't happen overnight or quickly.
[1:02:10] And the satchel limitations of this is five years.
[1:02:13] We brought it in under one year.
[1:02:15] So that's really where we're at.
[1:02:17] Mr. Lee, it's clear that you don't want to talk specifics today.
[1:02:21] But to the American public,
[1:02:22] can you at least give us a sense
[1:02:24] of whether you have hard evidence or evidence
[1:02:26] that shows that Mr. Comey intended
[1:02:29] for President Trump to be harmed?
[1:02:31] And then secondarily, for critics who say,
[1:02:34] where does free speech end
[1:02:37] and an actual threat of violence begin?
[1:02:42] I don't know what critics say that,
[1:02:44] especially today,
[1:02:46] but it's not a very difficult line to look at.
[1:02:50] And it's not, in my mind,
[1:02:51] a difficult line for one to cross over one way or the other.
[1:02:54] We cannot, you are not allowed to threaten
[1:02:57] the President of the United States of America.
[1:02:59] That's not my decision.
[1:03:00] That's Congress's decision
[1:03:01] in a statute that they passed
[1:03:03] that we charge multiple times a year.
[1:03:06] And so whether there is a defense,
[1:03:08] as you just described,
[1:03:09] maybe, maybe there is,
[1:03:11] but the government will have evidence.
[1:03:12] I am not going to talk about the evidence that we have.
[1:03:14] That's unfair to him.
[1:03:16] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[1:03:18] But it's enough to say
[1:03:19] that the grand jury returned an indictment.
[1:03:21] I'm just taking one more question.
[1:03:23] Thank you, sir.
[1:03:24] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[1:03:25] Should we expect more indictments of this sort?
[1:03:27] For example, in 2020,
[1:03:28] Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit
[1:03:30] with 8645 on her desk in the background.
[1:03:34] Is that the kind of thing you would pursue?
[1:03:35] And then just really quickly,
[1:03:37] should Comey expect to face more charges
[1:03:40] for his role in the Russia collusion investigations?
[1:03:43] I'm not going to comment on other investigations
[1:03:44] involving Mr. Comey.
[1:03:47] He was indicted in the East District of Virginia.
[1:03:50] That was dismissed on procedural grounds
[1:03:51] because of the judge's finding
[1:03:53] regarding the U.S. attorney.
[1:03:55] So that case is under appeal.
[1:03:56] As far as other investigations that are happening,
[1:03:59] it would not be appropriate or fair
[1:04:01] for me to comment on that time.
[1:04:03] As far as other incidents of threats
[1:04:05] against the President of the United States,
[1:04:07] those will be investigated.
[1:04:08] Every case is different.
[1:04:09] The facts are different.
[1:04:11] Who makes the threat matters?
[1:04:12] What the threat says matters?
[1:04:14] You're right.
[1:04:15] The question about intent matters.
[1:04:17] And we have to prove that.
[1:04:18] That's something that's our job.
[1:04:19] And that's something that prosecutors
[1:04:21] will have to do in front of a jury
[1:04:22] at the right time.
[1:04:23] But you cannot compare.
[1:04:24] It's not fair to the American people.
[1:04:26] It's not fair to the defendant.
[1:04:28] And it's certainly not fair
[1:04:29] to the prosecutors to compare,
[1:04:32] well, if you did it here,
[1:04:33] why didn't you do it there?
[1:04:34] Every case is different.
[1:04:36] But there's one thing
[1:04:37] that will never be different,
[1:04:38] which is that you cannot threaten
[1:04:40] to kill the President of the United States.
[1:04:41] Full stop.
[1:04:43] All right.
[1:04:43] Thanks a lot, guys.
[1:04:43] The President Trump
[1:04:45] in Atlanta returned an indictment
[1:04:47] against James Comey
[1:04:49] on two counts.
[1:04:50] The first count is that
[1:04:51] on or about May 15th of last year,
[1:04:55] he knowingly and willfully
[1:04:56] making a threat
[1:04:57] to take the life of
[1:04:58] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:05:00] upon the President
[1:05:01] of the United States.
[1:05:02] Count two,
[1:05:04] same day, May 15th, 2025,
[1:05:07] that the defendant,
[1:05:08] James Comey,
[1:05:08] knowingly and willfully
[1:05:09] transmitting in interstate commerce
[1:05:11] a communication
[1:05:12] that contained a threat
[1:05:14] to kill the President
[1:05:15] of the United States.
[1:05:16] Both of these counts
[1:05:17] carry a maximum term
[1:05:18] of imprisonment
[1:05:19] of 10 years.
[1:05:23] So I think it's fair to say
[1:05:25] that threatening the life
[1:05:27] of anybody is dangerous
[1:05:30] and potentially a crime.
[1:05:33] Threatening the life
[1:05:33] of the President
[1:05:34] of the United States
[1:05:35] will never be tolerated
[1:05:37] by the Department of Justice.
[1:05:39] Over the past year,
[1:05:41] this department has charged
[1:05:43] dozens of cases
[1:05:44] involving threats
[1:05:46] against all sorts
[1:05:48] of individuals.
[1:05:49] We take these seriously,
[1:05:52] every single one of them.
[1:05:55] For example,
[1:05:55] just today,
[1:05:56] in the Northern District
[1:05:57] of Florida,
[1:05:58] there was a guilty plea
[1:05:59] from an individual
[1:06:00] who threatened
[1:06:00] multiple political leaders,
[1:06:02] including President Trump.
[1:06:05] In the Eastern District
[1:06:06] of North Carolina,
[1:06:07] where this case
[1:06:07] was indicted earlier today,
[1:06:09] there are multiple threats cases
[1:06:11] very similar to this one,
[1:06:13] including one
[1:06:14] where the defendant
[1:06:15] pled guilty recently
[1:06:16] to threatening
[1:06:17] former President Biden,
[1:06:19] another one that's scheduled
[1:06:20] to go to trial this summer,
[1:06:21] another one indicted,
[1:06:23] an individual was divided,
[1:06:25] was indicted
[1:06:25] for threatening Tom Homan.
[1:06:28] I say that to say
[1:06:30] that while this case
[1:06:33] is unique
[1:06:34] and this indictment
[1:06:35] stands out
[1:06:35] because of the name
[1:06:36] of the defendant,
[1:06:37] his alleged conduct
[1:06:38] is the same kind
[1:06:39] of conduct
[1:06:40] that we will never tolerate
[1:06:42] and that we will always investigate
[1:06:44] and regularly prosecute.
[1:06:46] I want to take a moment
[1:06:48] to thank the hardworking members
[1:06:51] of the FBI
[1:06:52] who investigated this case
[1:06:53] over the past 11 months or so,
[1:06:57] the United States Secret Service
[1:06:58] who also assisted
[1:06:59] in this investigation,
[1:07:00] and the United States
[1:07:01] Attorney's Office
[1:07:02] for the Eastern District
[1:07:04] of North Carolina
[1:07:05] led by United States Attorney
[1:07:07] Ellis Boyle
[1:07:08] who's standing to my right.
[1:07:10] This was an investigation
[1:07:11] that remains ongoing,
[1:07:13] that's been ongoing
[1:07:14] for about a year,
[1:07:16] and that's all
[1:07:17] we're going to say
[1:07:18] about it today.
[1:07:19] I will let the U.S. Attorney
[1:07:21] Boyle speak now
[1:07:23] and then after that,
[1:07:24] Director Patel.
[1:07:25] Thank you.
[1:07:29] Thank you,
[1:07:30] Mr. Attorney General.
[1:07:33] Earlier today,
[1:07:34] a grand jury
[1:07:35] in the Eastern District
[1:07:36] of North Carolina
[1:07:37] returned a true bill
[1:07:39] indicting Mr. James Comey
[1:07:41] with committing two felonies.
[1:07:44] Count one,
[1:07:45] he knowingly and willfully
[1:07:47] made a threat to kill
[1:07:48] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:07:50] upon the President
[1:07:51] of the United States
[1:07:52] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[1:07:58] Count two,
[1:08:00] he knowingly and willfully
[1:08:02] transmitted an interstate
[1:08:04] and foreign commerce,
[1:08:06] a communication
[1:08:07] that contained a threat
[1:08:09] to kill President Trump
[1:08:11] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[1:08:18] Mr. Comey will be given
[1:08:20] every form of due process
[1:08:22] all citizens are entitled
[1:08:24] to receive
[1:08:25] to include a trial
[1:08:27] by a jury of his peers.
[1:08:31] In the Eastern District
[1:08:32] of North Carolina,
[1:08:33] it doesn't matter
[1:08:34] who you are.
[1:08:35] We take all threat cases
[1:08:37] seriously
[1:08:38] and prosecute
[1:08:40] anyone who violates
[1:08:42] federal law
[1:08:43] regardless of title
[1:08:44] or status.
[1:08:46] Thank you.
[1:08:50] Thank you.
[1:08:51] As you heard
[1:08:52] from the Attorney General
[1:08:53] and the U.S. Attorney,
[1:08:54] former FBI Director
[1:08:55] James Comey
[1:08:56] has now been indicted
[1:08:56] for two felony counts.
[1:08:59] While many of you
[1:08:59] may read this indictment
[1:09:00] and view this matter
[1:09:01] as a simple investigation,
[1:09:03] it is the farthest thing
[1:09:04] from that.
[1:09:05] Every single investigation
[1:09:06] this FBI
[1:09:06] and our partners
[1:09:07] at the Department of Justice
[1:09:08] undertake,
[1:09:09] especially those
[1:09:10] that involve the threats
[1:09:11] to harm or hurt
[1:09:13] or even kill individuals,
[1:09:14] whether they behold
[1:09:15] public office
[1:09:16] or civilians in our country,
[1:09:18] are met with the same measure
[1:09:19] of investigative prowess
[1:09:20] and tools and personnel
[1:09:21] in partnership
[1:09:22] with the Department of Justice
[1:09:23] as anyone else.
[1:09:24] As the U.S. Attorney indicated,
[1:09:26] James Comey
[1:09:26] will be afforded
[1:09:27] every matter of due process
[1:09:29] under the United States
[1:09:29] Constitution.
[1:09:31] And as the Attorney General
[1:09:32] indicated,
[1:09:32] this has been a case
[1:09:33] that's been investigated
[1:09:34] over the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[1:09:37] These cases take time.
[1:09:39] Our investigators work
[1:09:40] methodically.
[1:09:41] They are career agents,
[1:09:42] career prosecutors
[1:09:43] who work these matters.
[1:09:45] They call the balls
[1:09:45] and strikes in the field
[1:09:46] as they see fit
[1:09:47] pursuant to the facts
[1:09:48] of the case and the law.
[1:09:50] They took that information
[1:09:51] and made a presentment
[1:09:52] to a grand jury,
[1:09:53] a jury of appears
[1:09:54] in the district
[1:09:55] in which the alleged crime
[1:09:56] took place.
[1:09:57] And that grand jury spoke
[1:09:59] and that grand jury
[1:10:00] returned a two-count indictment
[1:10:02] against James Comey.
[1:10:03] James Comey
[1:10:04] allegedly threatened
[1:10:06] the life of the President
[1:10:07] of the United States.
[1:10:08] And as you all now know,
[1:10:09] shortly after posting
[1:10:11] that threat,
[1:10:12] he deleted that threat
[1:10:14] and then issued
[1:10:15] an apology.
[1:10:16] All of that information
[1:10:17] was presented
[1:10:17] to the grand jury
[1:10:18] and Mr. Comey
[1:10:20] will have his day in court
[1:10:21] and his ability
[1:10:22] to speak to a jury
[1:10:24] of his peers.
[1:10:25] Thank you.
[1:10:28] Thank you.
[1:10:29] We'll just take
[1:10:29] a couple of questions.
[1:10:31] Mr. Attorney General,
[1:10:32] the Justice Department
[1:10:35] in this filing today
[1:10:37] also issued
[1:10:37] an arrest warrant
[1:10:38] for Mr. Comey.
[1:10:40] Is it your belief
[1:10:41] that he is a continued
[1:10:43] public threat?
[1:10:45] And is there a request
[1:10:47] also for detention
[1:10:48] that you anticipate
[1:10:49] will be made in this case?
[1:10:51] So the Department of Justice
[1:10:53] does not issue arrest warrants.
[1:10:54] Grand juries do.
[1:10:55] And so the grand jury
[1:10:56] returned an indictment
[1:10:57] and arrest warrant.
[1:10:58] I expect that there
[1:11:00] will be communication
[1:11:01] like hundreds of others
[1:11:08] do every year.
[1:11:09] there will be
[1:11:10] some sort of arraignment
[1:11:12] set by the judge
[1:11:13] or assigned
[1:11:14] to the magistrate judge
[1:11:15] and when that happens
[1:11:16] you'll know about it.
[1:11:18] This is being handled
[1:11:20] differently from the last
[1:11:21] time he was indicted.
[1:11:23] That's my reference.
[1:11:24] In this case
[1:11:24] the Department requested
[1:11:26] an arrest warrant, right?
[1:11:28] Well, I don't think
[1:11:29] that it's public
[1:11:30] or clear
[1:11:31] what the Department requested.
[1:11:33] The grand jury
[1:11:34] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:11:35] Go ahead.
[1:11:36] Yes.
[1:11:36] Sir, how will you prove
[1:11:38] intent
[1:11:39] when, as the director
[1:11:40] had acknowledged,
[1:11:42] Mr. Comey said
[1:11:43] he did not associate
[1:11:44] 86 with doing harm
[1:11:46] and he took it down
[1:11:47] promptly, said
[1:11:48] it was political speech
[1:11:49] not an intent
[1:11:50] to harm the president?
[1:11:51] Well, it's not
[1:11:53] it's not
[1:11:53] this case was indicted today.
[1:11:56] This conduct occurred
[1:11:57] about a year ago
[1:11:58] May 15th of last year.
[1:12:00] There's been a tremendous
[1:12:01] amount of investigation
[1:12:02] and how do you prove intent
[1:12:03] in any case?
[1:12:04] You prove intent
[1:12:05] with witnesses
[1:12:06] with documents
[1:12:07] with the defendant himself
[1:12:09] to the extent
[1:12:09] to the extent
[1:12:10] it's appropriate
[1:12:11] and that's how
[1:12:12] we'll improve intent
[1:12:13] in this case
[1:12:13] and so I think
[1:12:15] that talking about
[1:12:16] what Mr. Comey
[1:12:18] will or will not do
[1:12:19] if there's a trial
[1:12:20] when there's a trial
[1:12:21] it's not
[1:12:22] it's very premature
[1:12:23] for me to do that today.
[1:12:25] General Blanche
[1:12:27] I want to ask you
[1:12:27] a quick question about
[1:12:28] there's a number
[1:12:29] of other different types
[1:12:31] of conduct
[1:12:31] Comey has been accused
[1:12:32] of over the past.
[1:12:33] One of them is
[1:12:34] abuse of FISA warrants.
[1:12:36] I wanted to ask
[1:12:37] if there's anything
[1:12:37] that we could
[1:12:37] talk about today
[1:12:39] in regards to that
[1:12:40] but on a separate matter
[1:12:41] if I may ask
[1:12:42] any more updates
[1:12:43] about the ballistics
[1:12:44] forensics analysis
[1:12:45] with the shooting
[1:12:46] that happened
[1:12:46] over the weekend.
[1:12:47] So on the first question
[1:12:48] no.
[1:12:49] There's nothing else
[1:12:49] to report
[1:12:50] about any investigations
[1:12:51] or anything involving
[1:12:53] Mr. Comey
[1:12:54] except the indictment
[1:12:55] that was returned
[1:12:55] today by the grand jury.
[1:12:57] I don't have anything
[1:12:58] further to talk about
[1:12:59] with the ballistics
[1:13:00] that are still
[1:13:01] being analyzed
[1:13:02] and I said it
[1:13:03] yesterday
[1:13:03] and every law enforcement
[1:13:06] member who is speaking
[1:13:08] on this issue
[1:13:09] is saying the same thing
[1:13:10] as they should
[1:13:10] which is that
[1:13:11] this is an ongoing
[1:13:12] investigation
[1:13:13] with really, really smart
[1:13:14] experts trying to understand
[1:13:15] what happened
[1:13:16] in that shooting
[1:13:17] and where the bullets went
[1:13:19] and ended up
[1:13:19] and where the bullets came from
[1:13:21] and once that is
[1:13:22] at a place
[1:13:23] where we can definitively say
[1:13:25] to the extent
[1:13:25] we can definitively say
[1:13:27] we will let you know.
[1:13:30] Director Comey posted this
[1:13:31] almost a year ago.
[1:13:32] Why bring this case now?
[1:13:33] Did you always feel
[1:13:34] like this was a strong prosecution
[1:13:35] or did something
[1:13:36] change recently?
[1:13:38] This investigation
[1:13:39] just didn't come now.
[1:13:41] It's the result
[1:13:41] of a lot of work
[1:13:43] by law enforcement
[1:13:44] over the past year.
[1:13:45] We don't time
[1:13:46] when we bring cases
[1:13:48] around anything
[1:13:49] other than
[1:13:49] when the investigation
[1:13:50] is at a place
[1:13:50] where we should go
[1:13:52] to the grand jury
[1:13:52] and that's exactly
[1:13:53] what we did
[1:13:54] in this case as well.
[1:13:56] As a former FBI director
[1:13:59] you may not agree
[1:14:00] with what he did.
[1:14:01] Should he be able
[1:14:01] to turn himself in
[1:14:02] as a former FBI director?
[1:14:04] He's not a flight risk.
[1:14:06] I didn't say
[1:14:06] he can't turn himself in.
[1:14:07] He's not under arrest
[1:14:09] right now
[1:14:09] and he may be able
[1:14:10] to work out something.
[1:14:10] I don't know
[1:14:10] whether he's under arrest
[1:14:11] right now.
[1:14:11] I'm here talking to you.
[1:14:12] The grand jury issued
[1:14:13] an arrest warrant.
[1:14:14] I think that the way
[1:14:15] that this happens
[1:14:16] is different in every case.
[1:14:17] It's fact intensive.
[1:14:18] It depends on
[1:14:19] who the defendant is.
[1:14:21] It depends on
[1:14:21] whether he has counsel.
[1:14:22] It depends on
[1:14:23] what the judge wants done.
[1:14:24] And so I don't
[1:14:25] know when the judge
[1:14:27] will schedule
[1:14:28] an initial arraignment,
[1:14:29] if that will be scheduled
[1:14:31] by the magistrate
[1:14:31] or the district court judge.
[1:14:32] I am sure.
[1:14:33] I don't know
[1:14:33] if you want to speak to that
[1:14:35] or if it's just something
[1:14:37] that will come up
[1:14:37] in the next coming days.
[1:14:39] You'll know when it happens.
[1:14:40] As far as what
[1:14:40] Mr. Comey does
[1:14:42] between now and then,
[1:14:43] I'm going to leave that up
[1:14:44] to the line prosecutors
[1:14:45] in the Eastern District
[1:14:46] of North Carolina,
[1:14:47] the FBI agents
[1:14:48] and the work
[1:14:49] that they're doing.
[1:14:50] Can you explain why
[1:14:51] Director Patel,
[1:14:52] maybe you said
[1:14:53] that it's a complicated thing.
[1:14:54] A lot of people might think
[1:14:55] it's an easy case.
[1:14:56] Why did it take so long?
[1:14:57] I know that you guys
[1:14:58] chose to go with this now,
[1:14:59] but to the layman
[1:15:00] just looking at this case
[1:15:02] or layperson looking at the case,
[1:15:03] it was an Instagram post.
[1:15:05] He apologized.
[1:15:06] Why did it take so long?
[1:15:08] Well, I'm not going to get
[1:15:09] into the details
[1:15:09] of the investigation itself,
[1:15:11] but a lot of these cases,
[1:15:12] you could look at
[1:15:13] when the threats were made
[1:15:14] and when charges are brought.
[1:15:17] They're not easy cases.
[1:15:18] And so we have to,
[1:15:19] there's a communication
[1:15:20] that's sent allegedly
[1:15:22] in this case.
[1:15:23] And so that means
[1:15:24] that we have to look at devices.
[1:15:26] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[1:15:28] He has lawyers.
[1:15:29] So the extent that we're looking
[1:15:30] at materials that are
[1:15:32] potentially privileged,
[1:15:33] we have to get a wall,
[1:15:35] set up a wall
[1:15:36] and let totally independent
[1:15:37] lawyers look at those.
[1:15:38] And so that doesn't happen
[1:15:39] overnight or quickly.
[1:15:41] And the satchel limitations
[1:15:42] of this is five years.
[1:15:44] We brought it in under one year.
[1:15:45] So that's really where we're at.
[1:15:47] Mr. Comey, it's clear
[1:15:48] that you don't want
[1:15:49] to talk specifics today.
[1:15:51] But to the American public,
[1:15:53] can you at least give us
[1:15:54] a sense of whether you have
[1:15:55] hard evidence or evidence
[1:15:56] that shows that Mr. Comey
[1:15:59] intended for President Trump
[1:16:01] to be harmed?
[1:16:02] And then secondarily,
[1:16:03] for critics who say,
[1:16:05] where does free speech end
[1:16:07] and an actual threat
[1:16:09] of violence begin?
[1:16:12] I don't know what critics say
[1:16:15] that, especially today.
[1:16:16] But it's not a very difficult line
[1:16:19] to look at.
[1:16:20] And it's not, in my mind,
[1:16:21] a difficult line for one
[1:16:22] to cross over one way
[1:16:24] or the other.
[1:16:24] We cannot.
[1:16:25] You are not allowed to threaten
[1:16:27] the President of the United States
[1:16:28] of America.
[1:16:29] That's not my decision.
[1:16:30] That's Congress's decision
[1:16:32] in a statute that they passed
[1:16:33] that we charge multiple times a year.
[1:16:36] And so whether there is a defense,
[1:16:38] as you just described,
[1:16:40] maybe.
[1:16:40] Maybe there is.
[1:16:41] But the government
[1:16:42] will have evidence.
[1:16:42] I am not going to talk
[1:16:43] about the evidence
[1:16:44] that we have.
[1:16:45] That's unfair to him.
[1:16:47] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[1:16:48] But it's enough to say
[1:16:49] that the grand jury
[1:16:50] returned an indictment.
[1:16:52] I'm just going to take
[1:16:52] one more question.
[1:16:53] Thank you, sir.
[1:16:54] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[1:16:55] Should we expect
[1:16:56] more indictments of this sort?
[1:16:58] For example,
[1:16:58] in 2020,
[1:16:59] Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit
[1:17:00] with 8645 on her desk
[1:17:03] in the background.
[1:17:04] Is that the kind of thing
[1:17:05] you would pursue?
[1:17:06] And then just really quickly,
[1:17:07] should Comey expect
[1:17:09] to face more charges
[1:17:10] for his role
[1:17:11] in the Russia collusion investigations?
[1:17:13] I'm not going to comment
[1:17:14] on other investigations
[1:17:15] involving Mr. Comey.
[1:17:17] He was indicted
[1:17:19] in the East District of Virginia.
[1:17:20] That was dismissed
[1:17:20] on procedural grounds
[1:17:22] because of the judge's finding
[1:17:23] regarding the U.S. attorney.
[1:17:25] So that case is under appeal.
[1:17:27] As far as other investigations
[1:17:29] that are happening,
[1:17:30] it would not be appropriate
[1:17:30] or fair for me
[1:17:31] to comment on that time.
[1:17:33] As far as other instances
[1:17:34] of threats
[1:17:35] against the President
[1:17:36] of the United States,
[1:17:37] those will be investigated.
[1:17:38] Every case is different.
[1:17:40] The facts are different.
[1:17:41] Who makes the threat matters?
[1:17:43] What the threat says matters?
[1:17:44] You're right.
[1:17:45] The question about intent matters.
[1:17:47] And we have to prove that.
[1:17:48] That's something that's our job.
[1:17:50] And that's something
[1:17:50] that prosecutors will have to do
[1:17:51] in front of a jury
[1:17:52] at the right time.
[1:17:53] But you cannot compare.
[1:17:55] It's not fair
[1:17:55] to the American people.
[1:17:57] It's not fair to the defendant.
[1:17:58] And it's certainly not fair
[1:17:59] to the prosecutors
[1:18:01] to compare,
[1:18:02] well, if you did it here,
[1:18:03] why didn't you do it there?
[1:18:04] Every case is different.
[1:18:06] But there's one thing
[1:18:07] that will never be different,
[1:18:08] which is that you cannot threaten
[1:18:10] to kill the President
[1:18:11] of the United States.
[1:18:12] Full stop.
[1:18:13] All right.
[1:18:13] Thanks a lot, guys.
[1:18:14] Did President Trump
[1:18:15] return an indictment
[1:18:17] against James Comey
[1:18:19] on two counts?
[1:18:21] The first count is that
[1:18:22] on or about May 15th
[1:18:24] of last year,
[1:18:25] he knowingly
[1:18:26] and willfully making a threat
[1:18:27] to take the life of
[1:18:28] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:18:30] upon the President
[1:18:32] of the United States.
[1:18:33] count two,
[1:18:34] same day,
[1:18:35] May 15th, 2025,
[1:18:37] that the defendant,
[1:18:38] James Comey,
[1:18:39] knowingly and willfully
[1:18:40] transmitting
[1:18:40] in interstate commerce
[1:18:41] a communication
[1:18:42] that contained a threat
[1:18:44] to kill the President
[1:18:45] of the United States.
[1:18:47] Both of these counts
[1:18:47] carry a maximum term
[1:18:49] of imprisonment
[1:18:49] of 10 years.
[1:18:54] So I think it's fair
[1:18:55] to say that threatening
[1:18:56] the life of anybody
[1:18:59] is dangerous
[1:19:00] and potentially a crime.
[1:19:03] Threatening the life
[1:19:04] of the President
[1:19:05] of the United States
[1:19:06] will never be tolerated
[1:19:07] by the Department of Justice.
[1:19:10] Over the past year,
[1:19:12] this department
[1:19:12] has charged dozens
[1:19:14] of cases involving threats
[1:19:16] against all sorts
[1:19:18] of individuals.
[1:19:20] We take these seriously,
[1:19:22] every single one of them.
[1:19:25] For example,
[1:19:26] just today in the
[1:19:27] Northern District of Florida,
[1:19:28] there was a guilty plea
[1:19:29] from an individual
[1:19:30] who threatened
[1:19:31] multiple political leaders
[1:19:32] including President Trump.
[1:19:35] In the Eastern District
[1:19:36] of North Carolina,
[1:19:37] where this case
[1:19:38] was indicted earlier today,
[1:19:39] there are multiple
[1:19:40] threats cases
[1:19:42] very similar to this one,
[1:19:43] including one
[1:19:44] where the defendant
[1:19:45] pled guilty recently
[1:19:47] to threatening
[1:19:47] former President Biden,
[1:19:49] another one that's
[1:19:50] scheduled to go to trial
[1:19:51] this summer,
[1:19:52] another one indicted,
[1:19:54] an individual was divided,
[1:19:55] was indicted
[1:19:56] for threatening Tom Homan.
[1:19:58] I say that to say
[1:20:01] that while this case
[1:20:03] is unique
[1:20:04] and this indictment
[1:20:05] stands out
[1:20:06] because of the name
[1:20:06] of the defendant,
[1:20:08] his alleged conduct
[1:20:09] is the same kind of conduct
[1:20:10] that we will never tolerate
[1:20:12] and that we will always
[1:20:14] investigate
[1:20:14] and regularly prosecute.
[1:20:17] I want to take a moment
[1:20:18] to thank the hardworking members
[1:20:22] of the FBI
[1:20:22] who investigated this case
[1:20:24] over the past 11 months or so,
[1:20:27] the United States Secret Service
[1:20:28] who also assisted
[1:20:29] in this investigation,
[1:20:30] and the United States
[1:20:32] Attorney's Office
[1:20:33] for the Eastern District
[1:20:34] of North Carolina
[1:20:35] led by United States Attorney
[1:20:37] Ellis Boyle
[1:20:38] who's standing to my right.
[1:20:40] This was an investigation
[1:20:41] that remains ongoing,
[1:20:43] that's been ongoing
[1:20:45] for about a year,
[1:20:46] and that's all we're going
[1:20:48] to say about it today.
[1:20:49] I will let the U.S. Attorney
[1:20:51] Boyle speak now
[1:20:53] and then after that,
[1:20:54] Director Patel.
[1:20:55] Thank you.
[1:20:59] Thank you,
[1:21:00] Mr. Attorney General.
[1:21:03] Earlier today,
[1:21:04] a grand jury
[1:21:05] in the Eastern District
[1:21:07] of North Carolina
[1:21:07] returned a true bill
[1:21:09] indicting Mr. James Comey
[1:21:11] with committing two felonies.
[1:21:14] Count one,
[1:21:15] he knowingly and willfully
[1:21:17] made a threat to kill
[1:21:18] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:21:21] upon the President
[1:21:21] of the United States
[1:21:23] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A.
[1:21:29] Count two,
[1:21:30] he knowingly and willfully transmitted
[1:21:33] an interstate
[1:21:35] and foreign commerce,
[1:21:37] a communication
[1:21:37] that contained a threat
[1:21:39] to kill President Trump
[1:21:41] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 875C.
[1:21:49] Mr. Comey will be given
[1:21:50] every form of due process
[1:21:52] all citizens are entitled
[1:21:55] to receive
[1:21:55] to include a trial
[1:21:58] by a jury of his peers.
[1:22:00] In the Eastern District
[1:22:02] of North Carolina,
[1:22:03] it doesn't matter
[1:22:04] who you are.
[1:22:06] We take all threat cases seriously
[1:22:08] and prosecute anyone
[1:22:11] who violates federal law,
[1:22:13] regardless of title or status.
[1:22:16] Thank you.
[1:22:21] Thank you.
[1:22:21] As you heard
[1:22:22] from the Attorney General
[1:22:23] and the U.S. Attorney,
[1:22:24] former FBI Director James Comey
[1:22:26] has now been indicted
[1:22:27] for two felony counts.
[1:22:29] While many of you
[1:22:30] may read this indictment
[1:22:31] and view this matter
[1:22:32] as a simple investigation,
[1:22:33] it is the farthest thing
[1:22:34] from that.
[1:22:35] Every single investigation
[1:22:36] this FBI and our partners
[1:22:37] at the Department of Justice
[1:22:38] undertake,
[1:22:39] especially those
[1:22:40] that involve the threats
[1:22:41] to harm or hurt
[1:22:43] or even kill individuals,
[1:22:45] whether they behold
[1:22:45] public office
[1:22:46] or civilians in our country,
[1:22:48] are met with the same measure
[1:22:49] of investigative prowess
[1:22:50] and tools and personnel
[1:22:52] in partnership
[1:22:52] with the Department of Justice
[1:22:53] as anyone else.
[1:22:55] As the U.S. Attorney indicated,
[1:22:56] James Comey
[1:22:57] will be afforded
[1:22:57] every matter of due process
[1:22:59] under the United States Constitution.
[1:23:01] And as the Attorney General
[1:23:02] indicated,
[1:23:02] this has been a case
[1:23:03] that's been investigated
[1:23:04] over the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[1:23:07] These cases take time.
[1:23:09] Our investigators work methodically.
[1:23:11] They are career agents,
[1:23:13] career prosecutors
[1:23:13] who work these matters.
[1:23:15] They call the balls
[1:23:16] and strikes in the field
[1:23:17] as they see fit
[1:23:18] pursuant to the facts
[1:23:19] of the case and the law.
[1:23:20] They took that information
[1:23:21] and made a presentment
[1:23:23] to a grand jury,
[1:23:24] a jury of appears
[1:23:25] in the district
[1:23:25] in which the alleged crime
[1:23:26] took place.
[1:23:27] And that grand jury spoke
[1:23:29] and that grand jury
[1:23:31] returned a two-count indictment
[1:23:32] against James Comey.
[1:23:34] James Comey
[1:23:35] allegedly threatened
[1:23:36] the life of the President
[1:23:37] of the United States.
[1:23:39] And as you all now know,
[1:23:40] shortly after posting
[1:23:41] that threat,
[1:23:43] he deleted that threat
[1:23:44] and then issued an apology.
[1:23:46] All of that information
[1:23:47] was presented
[1:23:48] to the grand jury
[1:23:48] and Mr. Comey
[1:23:50] will have his day in court
[1:23:51] and his ability
[1:23:52] to speak to a jury
[1:23:54] of his peers.
[1:23:55] Thank you.
[1:23:58] Thank you.
[1:23:59] We'll just take a couple
[1:24:00] of questions.
[1:24:02] Mr. Attorney General,
[1:24:03] the Justice Department
[1:24:05] in this filing today
[1:24:07] also issued an arrest warrant
[1:24:09] for Mr. Comey.
[1:24:10] Is it your belief
[1:24:11] that he is a continued
[1:24:13] public threat?
[1:24:15] And is there a request
[1:24:17] also for detention
[1:24:18] that you anticipate
[1:24:19] will be made in this case?
[1:24:21] So the Department of Justice
[1:24:23] does not issue arrest warrants.
[1:24:24] Grand juries do.
[1:24:26] And so the grand jury
[1:24:26] returned an indictment
[1:24:27] and arrest warrant.
[1:24:28] I expect that
[1:24:30] there will be communication
[1:24:31] like hundreds of others
[1:24:38] do every year.
[1:24:40] There will be
[1:24:41] some sort of arraignment
[1:24:43] set by the judge
[1:24:44] or assigned
[1:24:45] to the magistrate judge.
[1:24:46] And when that happens,
[1:24:47] you'll know about it.
[1:24:49] But this is being handled
[1:24:51] differently from the last
[1:24:52] time he was indicted.
[1:24:53] That's my reference.
[1:24:54] In this case,
[1:24:55] the Department requested
[1:24:57] an arrest warrant, right?
[1:24:59] Well, I don't think
[1:25:00] that it's public or clear
[1:25:01] what the Department requested.
[1:25:03] The grand jury
[1:25:04] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:25:06] Go ahead.
[1:25:06] Yes.
[1:25:07] Sir, how will you prove intent
[1:25:09] when, as the director
[1:25:11] had acknowledged,
[1:25:13] Mr. Comey said
[1:25:13] he did not associate
[1:25:14] 86 with doing harm
[1:25:16] and he took it down promptly,
[1:25:18] said it was political speech,
[1:25:19] not an intent to harm
[1:25:21] the president?
[1:25:22] Well, it's not.
[1:25:23] It's not.
[1:25:24] This case was indicted today.
[1:25:26] This conduct occurred
[1:25:27] about a year ago,
[1:25:29] May 15th of last year.
[1:25:30] There's been a tremendous
[1:25:31] amount of investigation.
[1:25:33] And how do you prove intent
[1:25:34] in any case?
[1:25:35] You prove intent
[1:25:35] with witnesses,
[1:25:37] with documents,
[1:25:38] with the defendant himself
[1:25:39] to the extent
[1:25:40] it's appropriate.
[1:25:41] And that's how
[1:25:42] we'll improve intent
[1:25:43] in this case.
[1:25:44] And so I think
[1:25:45] that talking about
[1:25:46] what Mr. Comey
[1:25:49] will or will not do
[1:25:50] if there's a trial,
[1:25:51] when there's a trial,
[1:25:52] it's very premature
[1:25:53] for me to do that today.
[1:25:55] General Blanche,
[1:25:57] I want to ask you
[1:25:58] a quick question about
[1:25:59] there's a number
[1:25:59] of other different types
[1:26:01] of conduct Comey
[1:26:02] has been accused of
[1:26:02] over the past.
[1:26:03] One of them is
[1:26:04] abuse of FISA warrants.
[1:26:06] I wanted to ask
[1:26:07] if there's anything
[1:26:07] that we could talk
[1:26:08] about today
[1:26:09] in regards to that,
[1:26:10] but on a separate matter,
[1:26:11] if I may ask
[1:26:12] any more updates
[1:26:13] about the ballistics
[1:26:14] forensics analysis
[1:26:15] with the shooting
[1:26:16] that happened
[1:26:16] over the weekend.
[1:26:18] So on the first question,
[1:26:19] no, there's nothing
[1:26:20] else to report
[1:26:20] about any investigations
[1:26:22] or anything involving
[1:26:23] Mr. Comey
[1:26:24] except the indictment
[1:26:25] that was returned today
[1:26:26] by the grand jury.
[1:26:27] I don't have anything
[1:26:28] further to talk about
[1:26:29] with the ballistics
[1:26:30] that are still being analyzed.
[1:26:32] And I said it yesterday
[1:26:34] and every law enforcement member
[1:26:37] who is speaking
[1:26:38] on this issue
[1:26:39] is saying the same thing
[1:26:40] as they should,
[1:26:41] which is that
[1:26:41] this is an ongoing investigation
[1:26:43] with really, really smart experts
[1:26:45] trying to understand
[1:26:46] what happened
[1:26:47] in that shooting
[1:26:47] and where the bullets went
[1:26:49] and ended up
[1:26:49] and where the bullets came from.
[1:26:51] And once that is
[1:26:52] at a place
[1:26:54] where we can definitively say
[1:26:55] to the extent
[1:26:56] we can definitively say,
[1:26:57] we will let you know.
[1:27:00] Director Comey posted this
[1:27:01] almost a year ago.
[1:27:03] Why bring this case now?
[1:27:04] Did you always feel
[1:27:05] like this was a strong prosecution
[1:27:06] or did something change recently?
[1:27:08] This investigation
[1:27:10] just didn't come now.
[1:27:11] It's the result
[1:27:11] of a lot of work
[1:27:14] by law enforcement
[1:27:14] over the past year.
[1:27:15] We don't time
[1:27:16] when we bring cases
[1:27:18] around anything
[1:27:19] other than when
[1:27:19] the investigation
[1:27:20] is at a place
[1:27:21] where we should go
[1:27:22] to the grand jury
[1:27:23] and that's exactly
[1:27:24] what we did
[1:27:25] in this case as well.
[1:27:27] As a former FBI director,
[1:27:29] you may not agree
[1:27:30] with what he did.
[1:27:31] Should he be able
[1:27:32] to turn himself in
[1:27:33] as a former FBI director?
[1:27:34] He's not a flight risk.
[1:27:36] I didn't say
[1:27:36] he can't turn himself in.
[1:27:38] So he's not under arrest
[1:27:39] right now
[1:27:39] and he may be able to work out
[1:27:40] I don't know
[1:27:40] whether he's under arrest
[1:27:41] right now.
[1:27:42] I'm here talking to you.
[1:27:43] The grand jury
[1:27:43] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:27:44] I think that the way
[1:27:45] that this happens
[1:27:46] is different in every case.
[1:27:47] It's fact intensive.
[1:27:48] It depends on,
[1:27:50] you're right,
[1:27:50] who the defendant is.
[1:27:51] It depends on
[1:27:51] whether he has counsel.
[1:27:53] It depends on
[1:27:53] what the judge wants done.
[1:27:54] And so I don't know
[1:27:57] when the judge
[1:27:58] will schedule
[1:27:58] an initial arraignment,
[1:28:00] if that will be scheduled
[1:28:01] by the magistrate
[1:28:02] or the district court judge.
[1:28:03] I am sure,
[1:28:03] I don't know
[1:28:04] if you want to speak to that
[1:28:05] or if it's just something
[1:28:07] that will come up
[1:28:08] in the next coming days,
[1:28:09] you'll know when it happens.
[1:28:10] As far as what
[1:28:11] Mr. Comey does
[1:28:12] between now and then,
[1:28:13] I'm going to leave that
[1:28:14] up to the line
[1:28:15] and prosecutors
[1:28:15] in the Eastern District
[1:28:17] of North Carolina,
[1:28:18] the FBI agents
[1:28:19] and the work
[1:28:19] that they're doing.
[1:28:20] Why?
[1:28:21] Director Patel,
[1:28:22] maybe you said
[1:28:23] that it's a complicated thing.
[1:28:24] A lot of people might think
[1:28:25] it's an easy case.
[1:28:26] Why did it take so long?
[1:28:28] I know that you guys
[1:28:28] chose to go with this now,
[1:28:30] but to the layman
[1:28:31] just looking at this case
[1:28:32] or layperson looking at the case,
[1:28:34] it was an Instagram post.
[1:28:35] He apologized.
[1:28:36] Why did it take so long?
[1:28:38] Well, I'm not going to get
[1:28:39] into the details
[1:28:40] of the investigation itself,
[1:28:41] but a lot of these cases,
[1:28:42] you could look at when
[1:28:44] the threats were made
[1:28:45] and when charges are brought.
[1:28:47] They're not easy cases.
[1:28:48] And so we have to,
[1:28:49] there's a communication
[1:28:51] that's sent allegedly
[1:28:52] in this case.
[1:28:53] And so that means
[1:28:54] that we have to look at devices.
[1:28:56] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[1:28:58] He has lawyers.
[1:28:59] So the extent
[1:29:00] that we're looking at materials
[1:29:01] that are potentially privileged,
[1:29:03] we have to get a wall,
[1:29:05] set up a wall,
[1:29:06] and let totally independent lawyers
[1:29:08] look at those.
[1:29:08] And so that doesn't happen
[1:29:10] overnight or quickly.
[1:29:11] And the satchel limitations
[1:29:13] of this is five years.
[1:29:14] We brought it in under one year.
[1:29:15] So that's really where we're at.
[1:29:17] Mr. Lee, it's clear
[1:29:18] that you don't want
[1:29:19] to talk specifics today.
[1:29:21] But to the American public,
[1:29:23] can you at least give us
[1:29:24] a sense of whether
[1:29:25] you have hard evidence
[1:29:26] or evidence that shows
[1:29:28] that Mr. Comey intended
[1:29:30] for President Trump
[1:29:31] to be harmed?
[1:29:32] And then secondarily,
[1:29:33] for critics who say,
[1:29:35] where does free speech end
[1:29:38] and an actual threat
[1:29:40] of violence begin?
[1:29:42] I don't know what critics say that,
[1:29:45] especially today,
[1:29:46] but it's not a very difficult line
[1:29:49] to look at.
[1:29:50] And it's not, in my mind,
[1:29:52] a difficult line
[1:29:52] for one to cross over
[1:29:53] one way or the other.
[1:29:55] We cannot.
[1:29:56] You are not allowed to threaten
[1:29:57] the president
[1:29:58] of the United States of America.
[1:29:59] That's not my decision.
[1:30:01] That's Congress's decision
[1:30:02] in a statute that they passed
[1:30:04] that we charge
[1:30:05] multiple times a year.
[1:30:06] And so whether there is a defense,
[1:30:09] as you just described,
[1:30:10] maybe, maybe there is.
[1:30:12] But the government
[1:30:12] will have evidence.
[1:30:13] I am not going to talk
[1:30:14] about the evidence
[1:30:14] that we have.
[1:30:15] That's unfair to him.
[1:30:17] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[1:30:19] But it's enough to say
[1:30:20] that the grand jury
[1:30:20] returned an indictment.
[1:30:22] I'm just going to take
[1:30:22] one more question.
[1:30:23] Thank you, sir.
[1:30:24] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[1:30:25] Should we expect
[1:30:26] more indictments
[1:30:27] of this sort?
[1:30:28] For example,
[1:30:29] in 2020,
[1:30:29] Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit
[1:30:31] with 8645 on her desk
[1:30:33] in the background.
[1:30:34] Is that the kind of thing
[1:30:35] you would pursue?
[1:30:36] And then just really quickly,
[1:30:37] should Comey expect
[1:30:39] to face more charges
[1:30:40] for his role
[1:30:41] in the Russia collusion
[1:30:42] investigations?
[1:30:43] I'm not going to comment
[1:30:44] on other investigations
[1:30:45] involving Mr. Comey.
[1:30:48] He was indicted
[1:30:49] in the East District of Virginia.
[1:30:50] That was dismissed
[1:30:51] on procedural grounds
[1:30:52] because of the judge's
[1:30:54] finding regarding
[1:30:54] the U.S. attorney.
[1:30:56] So that case is under appeal.
[1:30:57] As far as other
[1:30:58] investigations that are happening,
[1:31:00] it would not be appropriate
[1:31:01] or fair for me
[1:31:02] to comment on that time.
[1:31:03] As far as other instances
[1:31:05] of threats against
[1:31:06] the president
[1:31:06] of the United States,
[1:31:07] those will be investigated.
[1:31:09] Every case is different.
[1:31:10] The facts are different.
[1:31:11] Who makes the threat matters?
[1:31:13] What the threat says matters?
[1:31:15] You're right.
[1:31:16] The question about intent matters,
[1:31:17] and we have to prove that.
[1:31:19] That's something
[1:31:19] that's our job,
[1:31:20] and that's something
[1:31:21] that prosecutors
[1:31:21] will have to do
[1:31:22] in front of a jury
[1:31:23] at the right time.
[1:31:23] But you cannot compare.
[1:31:25] It's not fair
[1:31:26] to the American people.
[1:31:27] It's not fair
[1:31:27] to the defendant,
[1:31:28] and it's certainly
[1:31:29] not fair
[1:31:29] to the prosecutors
[1:31:31] to compare,
[1:31:32] well, if you did it here,
[1:31:33] why didn't you do it there?
[1:31:34] Every case is different,
[1:31:36] but there's one thing
[1:31:37] that will never be different,
[1:31:39] which is that
[1:31:39] you cannot threaten
[1:31:40] to kill the president
[1:31:41] of the United States.
[1:31:42] Full stop.
[1:31:43] All right.
[1:31:43] Thanks a lot, guys.
[1:31:45] Did President Trump
[1:31:46] return an indictment
[1:31:47] against James Comey
[1:31:49] on two counts?
[1:31:51] The first count
[1:31:52] is that on or about
[1:31:53] May 15th of last year,
[1:31:55] he knowingly
[1:31:56] and willfully
[1:31:56] making a threat
[1:31:57] to take the life of
[1:31:58] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:32:00] upon the president
[1:32:02] of the United States.
[1:32:03] Count two,
[1:32:04] same day,
[1:32:05] May 15th, 2025,
[1:32:07] that the defendant,
[1:32:08] James Comey,
[1:32:09] knowingly and willfully
[1:32:10] transmitting
[1:32:11] in interstate commerce
[1:32:12] a communication
[1:32:13] that contained a threat
[1:32:14] to kill the president
[1:32:15] of the United States.
[1:32:17] Both of these counts
[1:32:18] carry a maximum term
[1:32:19] of imprisonment
[1:32:20] of 10 years.
[1:32:24] So I think it's fair
[1:32:25] to say that threatening
[1:32:26] the life of anybody
[1:32:29] is dangerous
[1:32:31] and potentially a crime.
[1:32:33] Threatening the life
[1:32:34] of the president
[1:32:35] of the United States
[1:32:36] will never be tolerated
[1:32:37] by the Department of Justice.
[1:32:40] Over the past year,
[1:32:42] this department
[1:32:43] has charged
[1:32:43] dozens of cases
[1:32:45] involving threats
[1:32:47] against all sorts
[1:32:48] of individuals.
[1:32:50] We take these seriously,
[1:32:53] every single one of them.
[1:32:55] For example,
[1:32:56] just today,
[1:32:57] in the Northern District
[1:32:57] of Florida,
[1:32:59] there was a guilty plea
[1:33:00] from an individual
[1:33:01] who threatened
[1:33:01] multiple political leaders,
[1:33:03] including President Trump.
[1:33:06] In the Eastern District
[1:33:07] of North Carolina,
[1:33:07] where this case
[1:33:08] was indicted earlier today,
[1:33:10] there are multiple threats cases
[1:33:12] very similar to this one,
[1:33:14] including one
[1:33:15] where the defendant
[1:33:16] pled guilty recently
[1:33:17] to threatening
[1:33:18] former President Biden,
[1:33:19] another one
[1:33:20] that's scheduled
[1:33:20] to go to trial
[1:33:21] this summer,
[1:33:22] another one indicted,
[1:33:24] an individual
[1:33:25] who was divided
[1:33:25] was indicted
[1:33:26] for threatening
[1:33:27] Tom Homan.
[1:33:30] I say that to say
[1:33:31] that while this case
[1:33:34] is unique
[1:33:34] and this indictment
[1:33:35] stands out
[1:33:36] because of the name
[1:33:37] of the defendant,
[1:33:38] his alleged conduct
[1:33:39] is the same kind
[1:33:40] of conduct
[1:33:41] that we will never tolerate
[1:33:42] and that we will always
[1:33:44] investigate
[1:33:45] and regularly prosecute.
[1:33:47] I want to take a moment
[1:33:49] to thank the hardworking
[1:33:51] members of the FBI
[1:33:53] who investigated this case
[1:33:54] over the past 11 months or so,
[1:33:57] the United States Secret Service
[1:33:59] who also assisted
[1:34:00] in this investigation
[1:34:01] and the United States
[1:34:02] Attorney's Office
[1:34:03] for the Eastern District
[1:34:05] of North Carolina
[1:34:05] led by United States Attorney
[1:34:07] Ellis Boyle
[1:34:08] who's standing to my right.
[1:34:11] This was an investigation
[1:34:11] that remains ongoing,
[1:34:14] that's been ongoing
[1:34:15] for about a year
[1:34:16] and that's all we're going
[1:34:18] to say about it today.
[1:34:20] I will let the U.S. Attorney
[1:34:22] Boyle speak now
[1:34:23] and then after that
[1:34:24] Director Patel.
[1:34:25] Thank you.
[1:34:30] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[1:34:33] Earlier today,
[1:34:35] a grand jury
[1:34:36] in the Eastern District
[1:34:37] of North Carolina
[1:34:38] returned a true bill
[1:34:39] indicting Mr. James Comey
[1:34:42] with committing two felonies.
[1:34:45] Count one,
[1:34:46] he knowingly and willfully
[1:34:47] made a threat to kill
[1:34:49] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:34:51] upon the President
[1:34:52] of the United States
[1:34:53] in violation
[1:34:54] of 18 U.S.C.
[1:34:57] 8-7-1-A.
[1:34:59] Count two,
[1:35:01] he knowingly
[1:35:02] and willfully
[1:35:02] transmitted
[1:35:04] an interstate
[1:35:05] and foreign commerce
[1:35:06] a communication
[1:35:07] that contained
[1:35:09] a threat
[1:35:10] to kill
[1:35:11] President Trump
[1:35:12] in violation
[1:35:13] of 18 U.S.C.
[1:35:16] 8-7-5-C.
[1:35:19] Mr. Comey
[1:35:20] will be given
[1:35:20] every form
[1:35:22] of due process
[1:35:23] all citizens
[1:35:24] are entitled
[1:35:25] to receive
[1:35:26] to include
[1:35:27] a trial
[1:35:28] by a jury
[1:35:29] of his peers.
[1:35:31] In the Eastern District
[1:35:32] of North Carolina,
[1:35:34] it doesn't matter
[1:35:34] who you are.
[1:35:36] We take all
[1:35:37] threat cases
[1:35:38] seriously
[1:35:39] and prosecute
[1:35:40] anyone
[1:35:42] who violates
[1:35:42] federal law
[1:35:43] regardless
[1:35:44] of title
[1:35:45] or status.
[1:35:48] Thank you.
[1:35:51] Thank you.
[1:35:52] As you heard
[1:35:53] from the Attorney General
[1:35:53] and the U.S. Attorney,
[1:35:55] former FBI Director
[1:35:56] James Comey
[1:35:56] has now been indicted
[1:35:57] for two felony counts.
[1:35:59] While many of you
[1:36:00] may read this indictment
[1:36:01] and view this matter
[1:36:02] as a simple investigation,
[1:36:04] it is the farthest
[1:36:04] thing from that.
[1:36:05] Every single investigation
[1:36:06] this FBI
[1:36:07] and our partners
[1:36:08] at the Department
[1:36:08] of Justice
[1:36:09] undertake,
[1:36:10] especially those
[1:36:11] that involve
[1:36:11] the threats
[1:36:12] to harm
[1:36:13] or hurt
[1:36:14] or even kill
[1:36:14] individuals
[1:36:15] whether they
[1:36:15] behold public office
[1:36:16] or civilians
[1:36:17] in our country
[1:36:18] are met
[1:36:19] with the same measure
[1:36:20] of investigative prowess
[1:36:21] and tools
[1:36:21] and personnel
[1:36:22] and partnership
[1:36:23] with the Department
[1:36:23] of Justice
[1:36:24] as anyone else.
[1:36:25] As the U.S.
[1:36:25] Attorney indicated,
[1:36:26] James Comey
[1:36:27] will be afforded
[1:36:28] every matter
[1:36:28] of due process
[1:36:29] under the United States
[1:36:30] Constitution.
[1:36:31] And as the Attorney General
[1:36:32] indicated,
[1:36:33] this has been a case
[1:36:34] that's been investigated
[1:36:34] over the past 9, 10, 11 months.
[1:36:38] These cases take time.
[1:36:39] Our investigators
[1:36:40] work methodically.
[1:36:42] They are career agents,
[1:36:43] career prosecutors
[1:36:44] who work these matters.
[1:36:45] They call the balls
[1:36:46] and strikes in the field
[1:36:47] as they see fit
[1:36:48] pursuant to the facts
[1:36:49] of the case and the law.
[1:36:50] They took that information
[1:36:52] and made a presentment
[1:36:53] to a grand jury,
[1:36:54] a jury of appears
[1:36:55] in the district
[1:36:56] in which the alleged crime
[1:36:57] took place.
[1:36:58] And that grand jury
[1:36:59] spoke.
[1:37:00] And that grand jury
[1:37:01] returned a two-count indictment
[1:37:02] against James Comey.
[1:37:04] James Comey
[1:37:05] allegedly threatened
[1:37:06] the life of the President
[1:37:07] of the United States.
[1:37:09] And as you all now know,
[1:37:10] shortly after posting
[1:37:11] that threat,
[1:37:13] he deleted that threat
[1:37:14] and then issued
[1:37:15] an apology.
[1:37:16] All of that information
[1:37:17] was presented
[1:37:18] to the grand jury.
[1:37:20] And Mr. Comey
[1:37:21] will have his day in court
[1:37:22] and his ability
[1:37:23] to speak to a jury
[1:37:25] of his peers.
[1:37:25] Thank you.
[1:37:29] Thank you.
[1:37:29] We'll just take
[1:37:30] a couple of questions.
[1:37:32] Mr. Attorney General,
[1:37:33] the Justice Department
[1:37:36] in this filing today
[1:37:37] also issued
[1:37:38] an arrest warrant
[1:37:39] for Mr. Comey.
[1:37:41] Is it your belief
[1:37:42] that he is a
[1:37:43] continued public threat?
[1:37:45] And is there
[1:37:46] a request also
[1:37:48] for detention
[1:37:49] that you anticipate
[1:37:50] will be made
[1:37:50] in this case?
[1:37:51] So the Department of Justice
[1:37:53] does not issue
[1:37:54] arrest warrants.
[1:37:55] Grand juries do.
[1:37:56] And so the grand jury
[1:37:57] returned an indictment
[1:37:58] and arrest warrant.
[1:37:59] I expect that
[1:38:00] there will be communication
[1:38:01] like hundreds of others
[1:38:09] do every year.
[1:38:10] There will be
[1:38:11] some sort of arraignment
[1:38:13] set by the judge
[1:38:14] or assigned
[1:38:15] to the magistrate judge.
[1:38:16] And when that happens,
[1:38:17] you'll know about it.
[1:38:19] This is being handled
[1:38:21] differently from the last
[1:38:22] time he was indicted.
[1:38:24] That's my reference.
[1:38:25] In this case,
[1:38:26] the Department
[1:38:26] requested
[1:38:27] an arrest warrant, right?
[1:38:29] Well, I don't think
[1:38:30] that it's public
[1:38:31] or clear
[1:38:31] what the Department
[1:38:32] requested.
[1:38:34] The grand jury
[1:38:34] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:38:36] Go ahead.
[1:38:36] Yes.
[1:38:37] Sir, how will you
[1:38:38] prove intent
[1:38:40] when, as the director
[1:38:41] had acknowledged,
[1:38:43] Mr. Comey said
[1:38:44] he did not associate
[1:38:45] 86 with doing harm
[1:38:47] and he took it down
[1:38:48] promptly,
[1:38:48] said it was political speech,
[1:38:50] not an intent
[1:38:51] to harm the president?
[1:38:52] Well, it's not,
[1:38:54] it's not,
[1:38:54] this case was indicted today.
[1:38:56] This conduct occurred
[1:38:58] about a year ago,
[1:38:59] May 15th of last year.
[1:39:01] There's been a tremendous
[1:39:02] amount of investigation
[1:39:03] and how do you prove intent
[1:39:04] in any case?
[1:39:05] You prove intent
[1:39:06] with witnesses,
[1:39:07] with documents,
[1:39:08] with the defendant himself
[1:39:10] to the extent,
[1:39:10] to the extent it's appropriate
[1:39:11] and that's how
[1:39:12] we'll improve intent
[1:39:13] in this case.
[1:39:14] And so,
[1:39:15] I think that talking
[1:39:16] about what Mr. Comey
[1:39:19] will or will not do
[1:39:20] if there's a trial,
[1:39:21] when there's a trial,
[1:39:22] it's not,
[1:39:23] it's very premature
[1:39:23] for me to do that today.
[1:39:25] General Blanche,
[1:39:28] I want to ask you
[1:39:28] a quick question about,
[1:39:29] there's a number
[1:39:30] of other different types
[1:39:31] of conduct Comey
[1:39:32] has been accused of
[1:39:33] over the past.
[1:39:34] One of them is
[1:39:34] abuse of FISA warrants.
[1:39:37] I wanted to ask
[1:39:37] if there's anything
[1:39:38] that we could,
[1:39:38] you know,
[1:39:39] talk about today
[1:39:39] in regards to that,
[1:39:41] but on a separate matter,
[1:39:42] if I may ask,
[1:39:42] any more updates
[1:39:43] about the ballistics
[1:39:44] forensic analysis
[1:39:45] with the shooting
[1:39:46] that happened
[1:39:47] over the weekend?
[1:39:48] So on the first question,
[1:39:49] no.
[1:39:50] There's nothing else
[1:39:50] about this report
[1:39:51] about any investigations
[1:39:52] or anything involving
[1:39:54] Mr. Comey
[1:39:54] except the indictment
[1:39:55] that was returned today
[1:39:56] by the grand jury.
[1:39:57] I don't have anything
[1:39:58] further to talk about
[1:39:59] with the ballistics
[1:40:00] that are still
[1:40:02] being analyzed.
[1:40:03] And I said it yesterday
[1:40:04] and every law enforcement
[1:40:07] member who is speaking
[1:40:09] on this issue
[1:40:09] is saying the same thing
[1:40:10] as they should,
[1:40:11] which is that
[1:40:12] this is an ongoing
[1:40:13] investigation
[1:40:13] with really,
[1:40:14] really smart experts
[1:40:15] trying to understand
[1:40:16] what happened
[1:40:17] in that shooting
[1:40:18] and where the bullets
[1:40:19] went and ended up
[1:40:20] and where the bullets
[1:40:21] came from.
[1:40:22] And once that is
[1:40:23] at a place
[1:40:24] where we can definitively say
[1:40:25] to the extent
[1:40:26] we can definitively say,
[1:40:27] we will let you know.
[1:40:30] Director Comey
[1:40:31] posted this
[1:40:32] almost a year ago.
[1:40:33] Why bring this case now?
[1:40:34] Did you always feel
[1:40:35] like this was
[1:40:35] a strong prosecution
[1:40:36] or did something
[1:40:37] change recently?
[1:40:39] This investigation
[1:40:40] just didn't come now.
[1:40:41] It's the result
[1:40:42] of a lot of work
[1:40:44] by law enforcement
[1:40:45] over the past year.
[1:40:46] We don't time
[1:40:47] when we bring cases
[1:40:48] around anything
[1:40:49] other than when
[1:40:50] the investigation
[1:40:50] is at a place
[1:40:51] where we should go
[1:40:52] to the grand jury
[1:40:53] and that's exactly
[1:40:54] what we did
[1:40:55] in this case as well.
[1:40:57] As a former FBI director,
[1:41:00] you may not agree
[1:41:00] with what he did.
[1:41:02] Should he be able
[1:41:02] to turn himself in
[1:41:03] as a former FBI director?
[1:41:05] He's not a flight risk.
[1:41:06] I didn't say
[1:41:07] he can't turn himself in.
[1:41:08] So he's not under arrest
[1:41:09] right now
[1:41:10] and he may be able to work out
[1:41:10] I don't know
[1:41:11] whether he's under arrest
[1:41:12] right now.
[1:41:12] I'm here talking to you.
[1:41:13] The grand jury issued
[1:41:14] an arrest warrant.
[1:41:15] I think that the way
[1:41:16] that this happens
[1:41:16] is different in every case.
[1:41:18] It's fact intensive.
[1:41:19] It depends on who the defendant is.
[1:41:21] It depends on whether
[1:41:22] he has counsel.
[1:41:23] It depends on what
[1:41:24] the judge wants done.
[1:41:25] And so I don't know
[1:41:27] when the judge
[1:41:28] will schedule
[1:41:28] an initial arraignment,
[1:41:30] if that will be scheduled
[1:41:31] by the magistrate
[1:41:32] or the district court judge.
[1:41:33] I am sure,
[1:41:34] I don't know
[1:41:34] if you want to speak to that
[1:41:36] or if it's just something
[1:41:37] that will come up
[1:41:38] in the next coming days,
[1:41:39] you'll know when it happens.
[1:41:40] As far as what Mr. Comey does
[1:41:42] between now and then,
[1:41:44] I'm going to leave that up
[1:41:45] to the line prosecutors
[1:41:46] in the Eastern District
[1:41:47] of North Carolina,
[1:41:48] the FBI agents
[1:41:49] and the work that they're doing.
[1:41:51] Why, Director Patel,
[1:41:53] maybe you said
[1:41:53] that it's a complicated thing.
[1:41:55] A lot of people might think
[1:41:55] it's an easy case.
[1:41:57] Why did it take so long?
[1:41:58] I know that you guys
[1:41:59] chose to go with this now,
[1:42:00] but to the layman
[1:42:01] just looking at this case
[1:42:02] or layperson looking at the case,
[1:42:04] it was an Instagram post.
[1:42:06] He apologized.
[1:42:07] Why did it take so long?
[1:42:09] Well, I'm not going to get
[1:42:09] into the details
[1:42:10] of the investigation itself,
[1:42:11] but a lot of these cases,
[1:42:13] you could look at
[1:42:14] when the threats were made
[1:42:15] and when charges are brought,
[1:42:17] they're not easy cases.
[1:42:19] And so we have to,
[1:42:20] there's a communication
[1:42:21] that's sent allegedly
[1:42:22] in this case.
[1:42:24] And so that means
[1:42:24] that we have to look at devices.
[1:42:26] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[1:42:28] He has lawyers.
[1:42:29] So the extent
[1:42:30] that we're looking at materials
[1:42:31] that are potentially privileged,
[1:42:34] we have to get a wall,
[1:42:36] set up a wall
[1:42:36] and let totally independent lawyers
[1:42:38] look at those.
[1:42:39] And so that doesn't happen
[1:42:40] overnight or quickly.
[1:42:41] And the satchel limitations
[1:42:43] of this is five years.
[1:42:44] We brought it in under one year.
[1:42:46] So that's really where we're at.
[1:42:48] Mr. Lee, it's clear
[1:42:49] that you don't want
[1:42:49] to talk specifics today.
[1:42:51] But to the American public,
[1:42:53] can you at least give us
[1:42:55] a sense of whether you have
[1:42:56] hard evidence or evidence
[1:42:57] that shows that Mr. Comey
[1:43:00] intended for President Trump
[1:43:02] to be harmed?
[1:43:02] And then secondarily,
[1:43:04] for critics who say,
[1:43:05] where does free speech end
[1:43:08] and an actual threat
[1:43:10] of violence begin?
[1:43:12] I don't know what critics
[1:43:15] say that, especially today.
[1:43:17] But it's not a very difficult line
[1:43:19] to look at.
[1:43:21] And it's not, in my mind,
[1:43:22] a difficult line for one
[1:43:23] to cross over one way
[1:43:24] or the other.
[1:43:25] We cannot, you are not allowed
[1:43:27] to threaten the President
[1:43:28] of the United States of America.
[1:43:30] That's not my decision.
[1:43:31] That's Congress's decision
[1:43:32] in a statute that they passed
[1:43:34] that we charge multiple times a year.
[1:43:37] And so whether there is a defense,
[1:43:39] as you just described,
[1:43:40] maybe, maybe there is.
[1:43:42] But the government will have evidence.
[1:43:43] I am not going to talk
[1:43:44] about the evidence that we have.
[1:43:45] That's unfair to him.
[1:43:47] It's unfair to the prosecutors.
[1:43:49] But it's enough to say
[1:43:50] that the grand jury
[1:43:51] returned an indictment.
[1:43:52] I'm just going to take
[1:43:53] one more question.
[1:43:54] Thank you, sir.
[1:43:55] Mary Margaret with The Daily Wire.
[1:43:56] Should we expect more indictments
[1:43:58] of this sort?
[1:43:58] For example, in 2020,
[1:43:59] Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit
[1:44:01] with 8645 on her desk
[1:44:03] in the background.
[1:44:05] Is that the kind of thing
[1:44:06] you would pursue?
[1:44:06] And then just really quickly,
[1:44:08] should Comey expect
[1:44:09] to face more charges
[1:44:11] for his role in the Russia
[1:44:12] collusion investigations?
[1:44:14] I'm not going to comment
[1:44:15] on other investigations
[1:44:15] involving Mr. Comey.
[1:44:18] He was indicted
[1:44:19] in the East District of Virginia.
[1:44:21] That was dismissed
[1:44:21] on procedural grounds
[1:44:22] because of the judge's finding
[1:44:24] regarding the U.S. attorney.
[1:44:26] So that case is under appeal.
[1:44:27] As far as other investigations
[1:44:29] that are happening,
[1:44:30] it would not be appropriate
[1:44:31] or fair for me
[1:44:32] to comment on that time.
[1:44:34] As far as other instances
[1:44:35] of threats against
[1:44:36] the president of the United States,
[1:44:38] those will be investigated.
[1:44:39] Every case is different.
[1:44:40] The facts are different.
[1:44:42] Who makes the threat matters?
[1:44:43] What the threat says matters?
[1:44:45] You're right.
[1:44:46] The question about intent matters.
[1:44:48] And we have to prove that.
[1:44:49] That's something that's our job.
[1:44:50] And that's something
[1:44:51] that prosecutors will have to do
[1:44:52] in front of a jury
[1:44:53] at the right time.
[1:44:54] But you cannot compare.
[1:44:55] It's not fair
[1:44:56] to the American people.
[1:44:57] It's not fair to the defendant.
[1:44:59] And it's certainly not fair
[1:45:00] to the prosecutors
[1:45:01] to compare,
[1:45:02] well, if you did it here,
[1:45:04] why didn't you do it there?
[1:45:05] Every case is different.
[1:45:07] But there's one thing
[1:45:08] that will never be different,
[1:45:09] which is that
[1:45:09] you cannot threaten
[1:45:11] to kill the president
[1:45:12] of the United States.
[1:45:12] Full stop.
[1:45:14] All right.
[1:45:14] Thanks a lot, guys.
[1:45:15] Did President Trump
[1:45:16] return an indictment
[1:45:18] against James Comey
[1:45:20] on two counts?
[1:45:21] The first count
[1:45:22] is that on or about
[1:45:23] May 15th of last year,
[1:45:26] he knowingly and willfully
[1:45:27] making a threat
[1:45:28] to take the life of
[1:45:29] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:45:31] upon
[1:45:31] the president
[1:45:32] of the United States.
[1:45:33] Count two,
[1:45:35] same day,
[1:45:35] May 15th, 2025,
[1:45:38] that the defendant,
[1:45:39] James Comey,
[1:45:39] knowingly and willfully
[1:45:40] transmitting
[1:45:41] in interstate commerce
[1:45:42] a communication
[1:45:43] that contained a threat
[1:45:45] to kill the president
[1:45:46] of the United States.
[1:45:47] Both of these counts
[1:45:48] carry a maximum term
[1:45:49] of imprisonment
[1:45:50] of 10 years.
[1:45:54] So I think it's fair
[1:45:56] to say that threatening
[1:45:57] the life of anybody
[1:45:59] is dangerous
[1:46:01] and potentially a crime.
[1:46:04] Threatening the life
[1:46:04] of the president
[1:46:05] of the United States
[1:46:06] will never be tolerated
[1:46:08] by the Department of Justice.
[1:46:10] Over the past year,
[1:46:12] this department
[1:46:13] has charged
[1:46:14] dozens of cases
[1:46:15] involving threats
[1:46:17] against all sorts
[1:46:19] of individuals.
[1:46:20] We take these seriously,
[1:46:23] every single one of them.
[1:46:24] For example,
[1:46:26] just today
[1:46:27] in the Northern District
[1:46:28] of Florida,
[1:46:29] there was a guilty plea
[1:46:30] from an individual
[1:46:31] who threatened
[1:46:32] multiple political leaders,
[1:46:33] including President Trump.
[1:46:36] In the Eastern District
[1:46:37] of North Carolina,
[1:46:38] where this case
[1:46:38] was indicted earlier today,
[1:46:40] there are multiple threats cases
[1:46:42] very similar to this one,
[1:46:44] including one
[1:46:45] where the defendant
[1:46:46] pled guilty recently
[1:46:47] to threatening
[1:46:48] former President Biden,
[1:46:50] another one
[1:46:50] that's scheduled
[1:46:51] to go to trial
[1:46:52] this summer.
[1:46:52] Another one indicted,
[1:46:54] an individual was divided,
[1:46:56] was indicted
[1:46:56] for threatening Tom Homan.
[1:47:00] I say that to say
[1:47:01] that while this case
[1:47:04] is unique
[1:47:05] and this indictment
[1:47:06] stands out
[1:47:06] because of the name
[1:47:07] of the defendant,
[1:47:08] his alleged conduct
[1:47:09] is the same kind
[1:47:10] of conduct
[1:47:11] that we will never tolerate
[1:47:13] and that we will always
[1:47:14] investigate
[1:47:15] and regularly prosecute.
[1:47:17] I want to take a moment
[1:47:19] to thank the hardworking
[1:47:22] members of the FBI
[1:47:23] who investigated this case
[1:47:24] over the past 11 months
[1:47:27] or so,
[1:47:28] the United States
[1:47:28] Secret Service
[1:47:29] who also assisted
[1:47:30] in this investigation
[1:47:31] and the United States
[1:47:32] Attorney's Office
[1:47:33] for the Eastern District
[1:47:35] of North Carolina
[1:47:36] led by United States
[1:47:37] Attorney Ellis Boyle
[1:47:39] who's standing to my right.
[1:47:41] This was an investigation
[1:47:42] that remains ongoing.
[1:47:44] That's been ongoing
[1:47:45] for about a year
[1:47:46] and that's all
[1:47:48] we're going to say
[1:47:49] about it today.
[1:47:50] I will let the U.S.
[1:47:52] Attorney Boyle speak now
[1:47:54] and then after that
[1:47:55] Director Patel.
[1:47:56] Thank you.
[1:48:00] Thank you, Mr. Attorney General.
[1:48:04] Earlier today,
[1:48:05] a grand jury
[1:48:06] in the Eastern District
[1:48:07] of North Carolina
[1:48:08] returned a true bill
[1:48:10] indicting Mr. James Comey
[1:48:12] with committing two felonies.
[1:48:15] Count one,
[1:48:16] he knowingly
[1:48:17] and willfully
[1:48:18] made a threat
[1:48:18] to kill
[1:48:19] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:48:21] upon the President
[1:48:22] of the United States
[1:48:23] in violation
[1:48:25] of 18 U.S.C.
[1:48:27] 8-7-1-A.
[1:48:29] Count two,
[1:48:31] he knowingly
[1:48:32] and willfully
[1:48:33] transmitted
[1:48:34] an interstate
[1:48:35] and foreign commerce
[1:48:37] a communication
[1:48:38] that contained
[1:48:39] a threat
[1:48:40] to kill
[1:48:41] President Trump
[1:48:42] in violation
[1:48:43] of 18 U.S.C.
[1:48:46] 8-7-5-C.
[1:48:49] Mr. Comey
[1:48:50] will be given
[1:48:51] every form
[1:48:52] of due process
[1:48:53] all citizens
[1:48:55] are entitled
[1:48:55] to receive
[1:48:56] to include
[1:48:58] a trial
[1:48:58] by a jury
[1:48:59] of his peers.
[1:49:02] In the Eastern District
[1:49:03] of North Carolina,
[1:49:04] it doesn't matter
[1:49:05] who you are.
[1:49:06] We take all
[1:49:07] threat cases
[1:49:08] seriously
[1:49:09] and prosecute
[1:49:11] anyone
[1:49:12] who violates
[1:49:13] federal law
[1:49:14] regardless
[1:49:15] of title
[1:49:15] or status.
[1:49:18] Thank you.
[1:49:21] Thank you.
[1:49:22] As you heard
[1:49:23] from the Attorney General
[1:49:24] and the U.S. Attorney,
[1:49:25] former FBI Director
[1:49:26] James Comey
[1:49:27] has now been
[1:49:27] indicted
[1:49:27] for two felony counts.
[1:49:29] While many of you
[1:49:30] may read this indictment
[1:49:31] and view this matter
[1:49:32] as a simple investigation,
[1:49:34] it is the farthest
[1:49:35] thing from that.
[1:49:36] Every single investigation
[1:49:37] this FBI
[1:49:37] and our partners
[1:49:38] at the Department
[1:49:38] of Justice
[1:49:39] undertake,
[1:49:40] especially those
[1:49:41] that involve
[1:49:41] the threats
[1:49:42] to harm
[1:49:44] or hurt
[1:49:44] or even kill
[1:49:45] individuals,
[1:49:45] whether they
[1:49:46] behold public office
[1:49:47] or civilians
[1:49:47] in our country,
[1:49:49] are met
[1:49:49] with the same measure
[1:49:50] of investigative prowess
[1:49:51] and tools
[1:49:52] and personnel
[1:49:52] in partnership
[1:49:53] with the Department
[1:49:54] of Justice
[1:49:54] as anyone else.
[1:49:55] As the U.S. Attorney
[1:49:56] indicated,
[1:49:57] James Comey
[1:49:57] will be afforded
[1:49:58] every matter
[1:49:59] of due process
[1:50:00] under the United States
[1:50:00] Constitution.
[1:50:02] And as the Attorney General
[1:50:03] indicated,
[1:50:03] this has been a case
[1:50:04] that's been investigated
[1:50:05] over the past
[1:50:06] 9, 10, 11 months.
[1:50:08] These cases take time.
[1:50:10] Our investigators
[1:50:10] work methodically.
[1:50:12] They are career agents,
[1:50:13] career prosecutors
[1:50:14] who work these matters.
[1:50:16] They call the balls
[1:50:16] and strikes in the field
[1:50:17] as they see fit
[1:50:18] pursuant to the facts
[1:50:19] of the case
[1:50:20] and the law.
[1:50:21] They took that information
[1:50:22] and made a presentment
[1:50:23] to a grand jury,
[1:50:24] a jury of appears
[1:50:25] in the district
[1:50:26] in which the alleged crime
[1:50:27] took place.
[1:50:28] And that grand jury
[1:50:29] spoke.
[1:50:31] And that grand jury
[1:50:31] returned a two-count
[1:50:32] indictment
[1:50:33] against James Comey.
[1:50:34] James Comey
[1:50:35] allegedly threatened
[1:50:37] the life
[1:50:37] of the President
[1:50:38] of the United States.
[1:50:39] And as you all now know,
[1:50:41] shortly after posting
[1:50:42] that threat,
[1:50:43] he deleted that threat
[1:50:45] and then issued
[1:50:46] an apology.
[1:50:47] All of that information
[1:50:48] was presented
[1:50:48] to the grand jury.
[1:50:50] And Mr. Comey
[1:50:51] will have his day
[1:50:52] in court
[1:50:52] and his ability
[1:50:53] to speak to a jury
[1:50:55] of his peers.
[1:50:56] Thank you.
[1:50:59] Thank you.
[1:51:00] We'll just take
[1:51:00] a couple of questions.
[1:51:02] Mr. Attorney General,
[1:51:03] the Justice Department
[1:51:06] in this filing today
[1:51:08] also issued
[1:51:08] an arrest warrant
[1:51:09] for Mr. Comey.
[1:51:11] Is it your belief
[1:51:12] that he is a
[1:51:13] continued public threat?
[1:51:15] And is there
[1:51:16] a request also
[1:51:18] for detention
[1:51:19] that you anticipate
[1:51:20] will be made
[1:51:21] in this case?
[1:51:21] So the Department
[1:51:23] of Justice
[1:51:24] does not issue
[1:51:24] arrest warrants.
[1:51:25] Grand juries do.
[1:51:26] And so the grand jury
[1:51:27] returned an indictment
[1:51:28] and arrest warrant.
[1:51:29] I expect that
[1:51:30] there will be
[1:51:31] communication
[1:51:32] like hundreds of others
[1:51:39] do every year.
[1:51:41] There will be
[1:51:41] some sort of
[1:51:43] arraignment
[1:51:43] set by the judge
[1:51:44] or assigned
[1:51:45] to the magistrate judge.
[1:51:46] And when that happens,
[1:51:48] you'll know about it.
[1:51:49] But this is being
[1:51:51] handled differently
[1:51:52] from the last time
[1:51:53] he was indicted.
[1:51:54] That's my reference.
[1:51:55] In this case,
[1:51:55] the Department
[1:51:57] requested
[1:51:57] an arrest warrant,
[1:51:59] right?
[1:51:59] Well, I don't think
[1:52:00] that it's public
[1:52:01] or clear
[1:52:02] what the Department
[1:52:03] requested.
[1:52:04] The grand jury
[1:52:05] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:52:06] Go ahead.
[1:52:07] Yes.
[1:52:07] Sir, how will you
[1:52:09] prove intent
[1:52:10] when, as the director
[1:52:11] had acknowledged,
[1:52:13] Mr. Comey said
[1:52:14] he did not associate
[1:52:15] 86 with doing harm
[1:52:17] and he took it down
[1:52:18] promptly,
[1:52:19] said it was political
[1:52:19] speech,
[1:52:20] not an intent
[1:52:21] to harm the president?
[1:52:22] Well, it's not
[1:52:24] this case
[1:52:25] was indicted today.
[1:52:27] This conduct
[1:52:27] occurred about
[1:52:29] a year ago,
[1:52:30] May 15th of last year.
[1:52:31] There's been
[1:52:31] a tremendous
[1:52:32] amount of investigation
[1:52:33] and how do you
[1:52:34] prove intent
[1:52:34] in any case?
[1:52:35] You prove intent
[1:52:36] with witnesses,
[1:52:37] with documents,
[1:52:39] with the defendant
[1:52:39] himself to the extent
[1:52:40] it's appropriate
[1:52:42] and that's how
[1:52:43] we'll improve intent
[1:52:44] in this case.
[1:52:44] And so,
[1:52:45] I think that
[1:52:46] talking about
[1:52:47] what Mr. Comey
[1:52:49] will or will not do
[1:52:50] if there's a trial,
[1:52:51] when there's a trial,
[1:52:52] it's not as very
[1:52:53] premature for me
[1:52:54] to do that today.
[1:52:56] General Blanche,
[1:52:58] I want to ask you
[1:52:58] a quick question about
[1:52:59] there's a number
[1:53:00] of other different
[1:53:01] types of conduct
[1:53:02] Comey has been
[1:53:03] accused of over the past.
[1:53:04] One of them is
[1:53:05] abuse of FISA warrants.
[1:53:07] I wanted to ask
[1:53:08] if there's anything
[1:53:08] that we could talk
[1:53:09] about today
[1:53:10] in regards to that
[1:53:11] but on a separate
[1:53:11] matter,
[1:53:12] if I may ask
[1:53:13] any more updates
[1:53:14] about the ballistics
[1:53:15] forensic analysis
[1:53:16] with the shooting
[1:53:17] that happened
[1:53:17] over the weekend?
[1:53:18] So, on the first
[1:53:19] question, no.
[1:53:20] There's nothing else
[1:53:20] to report about
[1:53:21] any investigations
[1:53:22] or anything
[1:53:24] involving Mr. Comey
[1:53:25] except the indictment
[1:53:26] that was returned
[1:53:26] today by the grand jury.
[1:53:28] I don't have anything
[1:53:29] further to talk about
[1:53:30] with the ballistics
[1:53:31] that are still
[1:53:32] being analyzed
[1:53:33] and I said it
[1:53:34] yesterday
[1:53:34] and every law
[1:53:37] enforcement member
[1:53:38] who is speaking
[1:53:39] on this issue
[1:53:40] is saying the same
[1:53:40] thing as they should
[1:53:41] which is that
[1:53:42] this is an ongoing
[1:53:43] investigation
[1:53:44] with really,
[1:53:44] really smart experts
[1:53:45] trying to understand
[1:53:46] what happened
[1:53:47] in that shooting
[1:53:48] and where the bullets
[1:53:49] went and ended up
[1:53:50] and where the bullets
[1:53:51] came from
[1:53:52] and once that is
[1:53:53] at a place
[1:53:54] where we can
[1:53:55] definitively say
[1:53:56] to the extent
[1:53:56] we can definitively say
[1:53:58] we will let you know.
[1:54:01] Director Comey
[1:54:02] posted this
[1:54:02] almost a year ago.
[1:54:03] Why bring this case now?
[1:54:04] Did you always feel
[1:54:05] like this was a strong
[1:54:06] prosecution
[1:54:07] or did something
[1:54:07] change recently?
[1:54:09] This investigation
[1:54:10] just didn't come now.
[1:54:12] It's the result
[1:54:12] of a lot of work
[1:54:14] by law enforcement
[1:54:15] over the past year.
[1:54:16] We don't time
[1:54:17] when we bring
[1:54:18] cases around anything
[1:54:20] other than when
[1:54:20] the investigation
[1:54:21] is at a place
[1:54:21] where we should
[1:54:23] go to the grand jury
[1:54:23] and that's exactly
[1:54:24] what we did
[1:54:25] in this case as well.
[1:54:27] As a former FBI director
[1:54:30] you may not agree
[1:54:31] with what he did.
[1:54:32] Should he be able
[1:54:32] to turn himself in
[1:54:33] as a former FBI director?
[1:54:35] He's not a flight risk.
[1:54:37] I didn't say
[1:54:37] he can't turn himself in.
[1:54:38] So he's not under arrest
[1:54:40] right now
[1:54:40] and he may be able
[1:54:41] to work out something.
[1:54:41] I don't know
[1:54:41] whether he's under arrest
[1:54:42] right now.
[1:54:42] I'm here talking to you.
[1:54:43] The grand jury
[1:54:44] issued an arrest warrant.
[1:54:45] I think that the way
[1:54:46] that this happens
[1:54:47] is different in every case.
[1:54:48] It's fact intensive.
[1:54:49] It depends on
[1:54:50] who the defendant is.
[1:54:52] It depends on
[1:54:52] whether he has counsel.
[1:54:53] It depends on
[1:54:54] what the judge wants done.
[1:54:55] And so I don't know
[1:54:58] when the judge
[1:54:58] will schedule
[1:54:59] an initial arraignment.
[1:55:01] If that will be scheduled
[1:55:02] by the magistrate
[1:55:02] or the district court judge.
[1:55:03] I am sure
[1:55:04] I don't know
[1:55:04] if you want to speak to that
[1:55:06] or if it's just something
[1:55:08] that will come up
[1:55:08] in the next coming days
[1:55:10] you'll know when it happens.
[1:55:11] As far as what
[1:55:11] Mr. Comey does
[1:55:13] between now and then
[1:55:14] I'm going to leave that up
[1:55:15] to the line prosecutors
[1:55:16] in the Eastern District
[1:55:17] of North Carolina
[1:55:18] the FBI agents
[1:55:19] and the work
[1:55:20] that they're doing.
[1:55:21] Can you explain why
[1:55:22] Director Patel
[1:55:23] maybe you said
[1:55:24] that it's a complicated thing.
[1:55:25] A lot of people might think
[1:55:26] it's an easy case.
[1:55:27] Why did it take so long?
[1:55:28] I know that you guys
[1:55:29] chose to go with this now
[1:55:30] but to the layman
[1:55:31] just looking at this case
[1:55:33] or layperson looking at the case
[1:55:34] it was an Instagram post.
[1:55:36] He apologized.
[1:55:37] Why did it take so long?
[1:55:39] Well I'm not going to get
[1:55:40] into the details
[1:55:40] of the investigation itself
[1:55:42] but a lot of these cases
[1:55:43] you could look at
[1:55:44] when the threats were made
[1:55:45] and when charges are brought
[1:55:47] they're not easy cases
[1:55:49] and so we have to
[1:55:50] there's a communication
[1:55:51] that's sent
[1:55:52] allegedly in this case
[1:55:53] and so that means
[1:55:55] that we have to look
[1:55:55] at devices.
[1:55:57] Mr. Comey is a lawyer.
[1:55:59] He has lawyers.
[1:56:00] So the extent
[1:56:00] that we're looking at
[1:56:01] materials that
[1:56:02] are potentially privileged
[1:56:04] we have to get a wall
[1:56:06] and set up a wall
[1:56:07] and let totally independent
[1:56:08] lawyers look at those
[1:56:09] and so that doesn't happen
[1:56:10] overnight or quickly
[1:56:11] and the satchel
[1:56:13] limitations on this
[1:56:14] is five years.
[1:56:14] We brought it in under
[1:56:15] one year
[1:56:16] so that's really
[1:56:17] where we're at.
[1:56:18] Mr. Lee it's clear
[1:56:19] that you don't want
[1:56:20] to talk specifics today
[1:56:21] but to the American public
[1:56:23] can you at least
[1:56:25] give us a sense
[1:56:25] of whether you have
[1:56:26] hard evidence
[1:56:27] or evidence
[1:56:27] that shows that
[1:56:29] Mr. Comey intended
[1:56:30] for President Trump
[1:56:32] to be harmed
[1:56:33] and then secondarily
[1:56:34] for critics who say
[1:56:35] where does free speech
[1:56:37] end
[1:56:38] and an actual threat
[1:56:40] of violence begin?
[1:56:43] I don't know
[1:56:44] what critics say that
[1:56:46] especially today
[1:56:47] but it's not a very
[1:56:48] difficult line
[1:56:50] to look at
[1:56:51] and it's not in my mind
[1:56:52] a difficult line
[1:56:53] for one to cross over
[1:56:54] one way or the other.
[1:56:55] We cannot
[1:56:56] you are not allowed
[1:56:57] to threaten
[1:56:58] the President of the
[1:56:59] United States of America.
[1:57:00] That's not my decision.
[1:57:01] That's Congress's decision
[1:57:03] in a statute
[1:57:03] that they passed
[1:57:04] that we charge
[1:57:05] multiple times a year
[1:57:07] and so whether
[1:57:08] whether there is a defense
[1:57:09] as you just described
[1:57:10] maybe
[1:57:11] maybe there is
[1:57:12] but the government
[1:57:13] will have evidence.
[1:57:13] I am not going to talk
[1:57:14] about the evidence
[1:57:15] that we have
[1:57:15] that's unfair to him
[1:57:17] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[1:57:19] but it's enough to say
[1:57:20] that the grand jury
[1:57:21] returned an indictment.
[1:57:23] I'm just going to take
[1:57:23] one more question.
[1:57:24] Thank you sir.
[1:57:25] Mary Margaret with the Daily Wire.
[1:57:26] Should we expect
[1:57:27] more indictments
[1:57:28] of this sort?
[1:57:29] For example
[1:57:29] in 2020
[1:57:30] Gretchen Whitmer
[1:57:30] did a TV hit
[1:57:31] with 8645
[1:57:33] on her desk
[1:57:34] in the background.
[1:57:35] Is that the kind of thing
[1:57:36] you would pursue?
[1:57:37] And then just really quickly
[1:57:38] should Comey expect
[1:57:40] to face more charges
[1:57:41] for his role
[1:57:42] in the Russia
[1:57:42] collusion investigations?
[1:57:44] I'm not going to comment
[1:57:45] on other investigations
[1:57:46] involving Mr. Comey
[1:57:48] he was indicted
[1:57:50] in the eastern district
[1:57:50] of Virginia
[1:57:51] that was dismissed
[1:57:51] on procedural grounds
[1:57:53] because of the judge's
[1:57:54] finding regarding
[1:57:55] the U.S. attorney
[1:57:56] so that case is under appeal
[1:57:58] as far as other
[1:57:59] investigations that are happening
[1:58:00] it would not be appropriate
[1:58:01] or fair for me
[1:58:02] to comment on that time
[1:58:04] as far as other instances
[1:58:05] of threats
[1:58:06] against the president
[1:58:07] of the United States
[1:58:07] those will be investigated
[1:58:09] every case is different
[1:58:10] the facts are different
[1:58:12] who makes the threat matters
[1:58:13] what the threat says matters
[1:58:15] you're right
[1:58:16] the question about intent matters
[1:58:18] and we have to prove that
[1:58:19] that's something
[1:58:20] that's our job
[1:58:20] and that's something
[1:58:21] that prosecutors
[1:58:22] will have to do
[1:58:22] in front of a jury
[1:58:23] at the right time
[1:58:24] but you cannot compare
[1:58:25] it's not fair
[1:58:26] to the American people
[1:58:27] it's not fair
[1:58:28] to the defendant
[1:58:28] and it's certainly not fair
[1:58:30] to the prosecutors
[1:58:32] to compare
[1:58:32] well if you did it here
[1:58:34] why didn't you do it there
[1:58:35] every case is different
[1:58:37] but there's one thing
[1:58:38] that will never be different
[1:58:39] which is that
[1:58:40] you cannot threaten
[1:58:41] to kill the president
[1:58:42] of the United States
[1:58:43] full stop
[1:58:44] all right
[1:58:44] thanks a lot guys
[1:58:45] the president Trump
[1:58:46] returned an indictment
[1:58:48] against James Comey
[1:58:50] on two counts
[1:58:51] the first count
[1:58:52] is that on or about
[1:58:53] May 15th of last year
[1:58:55] he knowingly
[1:58:57] and willfully
[1:58:57] making a threat
[1:58:58] to take the life of
[1:58:59] and to inflict bodily harm
[1:59:01] upon the president
[1:59:03] of the United States
[1:59:04] count two
[1:59:04] same day
[1:59:05] May 15th 2025
[1:59:07] that the defendant
[1:59:09] James Comey
[1:59:09] knowingly and willfully
[1:59:11] transmitting
[1:59:11] in interstate commerce
[1:59:12] a communication
[1:59:13] that contained a threat
[1:59:15] to kill the president
[1:59:16] of the United States
[1:59:18] both of these counts
[1:59:19] carry a maximum term
[1:59:20] of imprisonment
[1:59:20] of 10 years
[1:59:23] so I think it's fair
[1:59:26] to say that threatening
[1:59:27] the life of anybody
[1:59:29] is dangerous
[1:59:31] and potentially a crime
[1:59:33] threatening the life
[1:59:35] of the president
[1:59:36] of the United States
[1:59:37] will never be tolerated
[1:59:38] by the Department of Justice
[1:59:40] over the past year
[1:59:42] this department
[1:59:43] has charged
[1:59:44] dozens of cases
[1:59:46] involving threats
[1:59:47] against all sorts
[1:59:49] of individuals
[1:59:50] we take these
[1:59:51] seriously
[1:59:52] every single one of them
[1:59:54] for example
[1:59:57] just today
[1:59:57] in the Northern District
[1:59:58] of Florida
[1:59:59] there was a guilty plea
[2:00:00] from an individual
[2:00:01] who threatened
[2:00:02] multiple political leaders
[2:00:03] including President Trump
[2:00:05] in the Eastern District
[2:00:07] of North Carolina
[2:00:08] where this case
[2:00:09] was indicted earlier today
[2:00:10] there are multiple
[2:00:11] threats cases
[2:00:13] very similar to this one
[2:00:14] including one
[2:00:15] where the defendant
[2:00:16] pled guilty recently
[2:00:18] to threatening
[2:00:18] former President Biden
[2:00:19] another one
[2:00:21] that's scheduled
[2:00:21] to go to trial
[2:00:22] this summer
[2:00:23] another one
[2:00:23] indicted
[2:00:24] an individual
[2:00:25] was indicted
[2:00:26] for threatening
[2:00:27] Tom Homan
[2:00:29] I say that to say
[2:00:32] that while this case
[2:00:34] is unique
[2:00:35] and this indictment
[2:00:36] stands out
[2:00:37] because of the name
[2:00:37] of the defendant
[2:00:38] his alleged conduct
[2:00:40] is the same kind of conduct
[2:00:41] that we will never tolerate
[2:00:43] and that we will always investigate
[2:00:45] and regularly prosecute
[2:00:47] I want to take a moment
[2:00:49] to thank the hardworking members
[2:00:52] of the FBI
[2:00:53] who investigated this case
[2:00:55] over the past 11 months or so
[2:00:57] the United States Secret Service
[2:00:59] who also assisted
[2:01:00] in this investigation
[2:01:01] and the United States Attorney's Office
[2:01:04] for the Eastern District
[2:01:05] of North Carolina
[2:01:06] led by United States Attorney
[2:01:08] Ellis Boyle
[2:01:09] who's standing to my right
[2:01:10] this was an investigation
[2:01:12] that remains ongoing
[2:01:14] that's been ongoing
[2:01:16] for about a year
[2:01:17] and that's all we're going to say
[2:01:19] about it today
[2:01:20] I will let the U.S. Attorney Boyle
[2:01:23] speak now
[2:01:24] and then after that
[2:01:25] Director Patel
[2:01:26] thank you
[2:01:27] thank you Mr. Attorney General
[2:01:33] earlier today
[2:01:35] a grand jury
[2:01:36] in the Eastern District
[2:01:38] of North Carolina
[2:01:38] returned a true bill
[2:01:40] indicting Mr. James Comey
[2:01:42] with committing two felonies
[2:01:45] count one
[2:01:46] he knowingly and willfully
[2:01:48] made a threat to kill
[2:01:49] and to inflict bodily harm
[2:01:52] upon the President
[2:01:52] of the United States
[2:01:54] in violation of 18 U.S.C. 871A
[2:01:59] count two
[2:02:01] he knowingly and willfully
[2:02:03] transmitted
[2:02:04] an interstate
[2:02:06] and foreign commerce
[2:02:07] a communication
[2:02:08] that contained a threat
[2:02:10] to kill President Trump
[2:02:12] in violation
[2:02:14] of 18 U.S.C. 875C
[2:02:18] Mr. Comey
[2:02:20] will be given
[2:02:21] every form of due process
[2:02:23] all citizens
[2:02:25] are entitled to receive
[2:02:26] to include
[2:02:28] a trial
[2:02:29] by a jury
[2:02:30] of his peers
[2:02:31] in the Eastern District
[2:02:33] of North Carolina
[2:02:34] it doesn't matter
[2:02:35] who you are
[2:02:36] we take all threat cases
[2:02:38] seriously
[2:02:39] and prosecute
[2:02:41] anyone who violates
[2:02:43] federal law
[2:02:44] regardless of title
[2:02:46] or status
[2:02:47] thank you
[2:02:49] thank you
[2:02:52] as you heard
[2:02:53] from the Attorney General
[2:02:54] and the U.S. Attorney
[2:02:55] former FBI Director
[2:02:56] James Comey
[2:02:57] has now been indicted
[2:02:58] for two felony counts
[2:02:59] while many of you
[2:03:01] may read this indictment
[2:03:02] and view this matter
[2:03:03] as a simple investigation
[2:03:04] it is the farthest
[2:03:05] thing from that
[2:03:06] every single investigation
[2:03:07] this FBI
[2:03:08] and our partners
[2:03:08] at the Department of Justice
[2:03:09] undertake
[2:03:10] especially those
[2:03:11] that involve
[2:03:12] the threats
[2:03:12] to harm
[2:03:14] or hurt
[2:03:14] or even kill
[2:03:15] individuals
[2:03:15] whether they
[2:03:16] behold public office
[2:03:17] or civilians
[2:03:18] in our country
[2:03:19] are met with
[2:03:20] the same measure
[2:03:20] of investigative prowess
[2:03:21] and tools
[2:03:22] and personnel
[2:03:23] in partnership
[2:03:23] with the Department of Justice
[2:03:24] as anyone else
[2:03:25] as the U.S. Attorney
[2:03:26] indicated
[2:03:27] James Comey
[2:03:28] will be afforded
[2:03:28] every matter
[2:03:29] of due process
[2:03:30] under the United States
[2:03:31] Constitution
[2:03:31] and as the Attorney General
[2:03:33] indicated
[2:03:33] this has been a case
[2:03:34] that's been investigated
[2:03:35] over the past
[2:03:36] 9, 10, 11 months
[2:03:38] these cases
[2:03:39] take time
[2:03:40] our investigators
[2:03:41] work methodically
[2:03:42] they are career agents
[2:03:43] career prosecutors
[2:03:44] who work these matters
[2:03:46] they call the balls
[2:03:47] and strikes in the field
[2:03:48] as they see fit
[2:03:49] pursuant to the facts
[2:03:50] of the case
[2:03:50] and the law
[2:03:51] they took that information
[2:03:52] and made a presentment
[2:03:54] to a grand jury
[2:03:54] a jury of appears
[2:03:56] in the district
[2:03:56] in which the alleged crime
[2:03:57] took place
[2:03:58] and that grand jury
[2:04:00] spoke
[2:04:00] and that grand jury
[2:04:02] returned a two-count
[2:04:02] indictment
[2:04:03] against James Comey
[2:04:04] James Comey
[2:04:06] allegedly threatened
[2:04:07] the life of the
[2:04:08] president of the United States
[2:04:09] and as you all now know
[2:04:11] shortly after posting
[2:04:12] that threat
[2:04:14] he deleted
[2:04:14] that threat
[2:04:15] and then issued
[2:04:16] an apology
[2:04:17] all of that information
[2:04:18] was presented
[2:04:19] to the grand jury
[2:04:19] and Mr. Comey
[2:04:21] will have his day in court
[2:04:22] and his ability
[2:04:23] to speak to
[2:04:25] a jury of his peers
[2:04:26] thank you
[2:04:26] thank you
[2:04:30] we'll just take a couple
[2:04:31] of questions
[2:04:32] Mr. Attorney General
[2:04:33] the Justice Department
[2:04:36] in this filing
[2:04:37] today
[2:04:38] also issued
[2:04:39] an arrest warrant
[2:04:40] for Mr. Comey
[2:04:41] is it your belief
[2:04:42] that he is a
[2:04:44] continued public threat
[2:04:45] and is there
[2:04:47] a request also
[2:04:48] for detention
[2:04:49] that you anticipate
[2:04:50] will be made
[2:04:51] in this case
[2:04:52] so the Department of Justice
[2:04:54] does not issue
[2:04:55] arrest warrants
[2:04:55] grand juries do
[2:04:56] and so the grand jury
[2:04:57] returned and I've
[2:04:58] an arrest warrant
[2:04:59] I expect
[2:05:00] that there will be
[2:05:01] communication
[2:05:02] like hundreds of others
[2:05:09] do every year
[2:05:11] there will be
[2:05:12] some sort of
[2:05:13] arraignment
[2:05:14] set by the judge
[2:05:15] or assigned
[2:05:16] to the magistrate judge
[2:05:17] and when that happens
[2:05:18] you'll know about it
[2:05:20] this is being handled
[2:05:22] differently
[2:05:22] from the last time
[2:05:23] he was indicted
[2:05:24] that's my reference
[2:05:25] in this case
[2:05:26] the Department requested
[2:05:28] an arrest warrant
[2:05:29] right
[2:05:29] well I don't think
[2:05:31] that it's public
[2:05:31] or clear
[2:05:32] what the Department
[2:05:33] requested
[2:05:34] the grand jury
[2:05:35] issued an arrest warrant
[2:05:36] go ahead
[2:05:37] yes
[2:05:37] sir
[2:05:38] how will you prove
[2:05:39] intent
[2:05:40] when as the director
[2:05:42] had acknowledged
[2:05:43] Mr. Comey said
[2:05:44] he did not associate
[2:05:45] 86 with doing harm
[2:05:47] and he took it down
[2:05:48] promptly said
[2:05:49] it was political speech
[2:05:50] not an intent
[2:05:51] to harm the president
[2:05:52] well it's not
[2:05:54] it's not
[2:05:55] this case was indicted
[2:05:56] today
[2:05:57] this conduct
[2:05:58] occurred
[2:05:58] about a year ago
[2:06:00] May 15th of last year
[2:06:01] there's been a tremendous
[2:06:02] amount of investigation
[2:06:03] and how do you prove intent
[2:06:05] in any case
[2:06:05] you prove intent
[2:06:06] with witnesses
[2:06:07] with documents
[2:06:08] with the defendant
[2:06:10] himself
[2:06:10] to the extent
[2:06:11] to the extent
[2:06:11] it's appropriate
[2:06:12] and that's how
[2:06:13] we'll improve intent
[2:06:14] in this case
[2:06:15] and so
[2:06:15] I think that
[2:06:16] talking about
[2:06:17] what Mr. Comey
[2:06:20] will or will not do
[2:06:21] if there's a trial
[2:06:21] when there's a trial
[2:06:22] it's not
[2:06:23] it's very premature
[2:06:24] for me to do that
[2:06:25] today
[2:06:25] General Blanche
[2:06:28] I want to ask you
[2:06:29] a quick question
[2:06:29] about there's a number
[2:06:30] of other different types
[2:06:32] of conduct
[2:06:32] Comey has been accused
[2:06:33] of over the past
[2:06:34] one of them is
[2:06:35] abuse of FISA warrants
[2:06:37] I wanted to ask
[2:06:38] if there's anything
[2:06:38] that we could talk
[2:06:39] about today
[2:06:40] in regards to that
[2:06:41] but on a separate matter
[2:06:42] if I may ask
[2:06:43] any more updates
[2:06:44] about the ballistics
[2:06:45] forensics analysis
[2:06:46] with the shooting
[2:06:47] that happened
[2:06:47] over the weekend
[2:06:48] so on the first question
[2:06:49] no
[2:06:50] there's nothing else
[2:06:51] to report
[2:06:51] about any investigations
[2:06:53] or anything involving
[2:06:54] Mr. Comey
[2:06:55] except the indictment
[2:06:56] that was returned
[2:06:57] today by the grand jury
[2:06:58] I don't have anything
[2:06:59] further to talk about
[2:07:00] with the ballistics
[2:07:01] that are still
[2:07:02] being analyzed
[2:07:03] and I said it
[2:07:04] yesterday
[2:07:05] and every law enforcement
[2:07:07] member
[2:07:08] who is speaking
[2:07:09] on this issue
[2:07:10] is saying the same
[2:07:11] thing as they should
[2:07:12] which is that
[2:07:12] this is an ongoing
[2:07:13] investigation
[2:07:14] with really really
[2:07:15] smart experts
[2:07:16] trying to understand
[2:07:17] what happened
[2:07:18] in that shooting
[2:07:18] and where the bullets
[2:07:19] went and ended up
[2:07:20] and where the bullets
[2:07:22] came from
[2:07:22] and once that is
[2:07:23] at a place
[2:07:25] where we can
[2:07:25] definitively say
[2:07:26] to the extent
[2:07:27] we can definitively say
[2:07:28] we will let you know
[2:07:30] Director Comey
[2:07:32] posted this
[2:07:32] almost a year ago
[2:07:33] why bring this case now
[2:07:35] did you always feel
[2:07:36] like this was a strong
[2:07:36] prosecution
[2:07:37] or did something
[2:07:37] change recently
[2:07:38] this investigation
[2:07:41] just didn't come now
[2:07:42] it's the result
[2:07:42] of a lot of work
[2:07:45] by law enforcement
[2:07:45] over the past year
[2:07:46] we don't time
[2:07:47] when we bring
[2:07:48] when we bring cases
[2:07:49] around anything
[2:07:50] other than when
[2:07:50] the investigation
[2:07:51] is at a place
[2:07:52] where we should go
[2:07:53] to the grand jury
[2:07:54] and that's exactly
[2:07:55] what we did
[2:07:56] in this case as well
[2:07:57] as a former FBI director
[2:08:00] you may not agree
[2:08:01] with what he did
[2:08:02] should he be able
[2:08:03] to turn himself in
[2:08:04] as a former FBI director
[2:08:05] he's not a flight risk
[2:08:06] I didn't say
[2:08:07] he can't turn himself in
[2:08:09] so he's not under arrest
[2:08:10] right now
[2:08:10] and he may be able
[2:08:11] I don't know
[2:08:11] whether he's under arrest
[2:08:12] right now
[2:08:13] I'm here talking to you
[2:08:13] the grand jury issued
[2:08:14] an arrest warrant
[2:08:15] I think that the way
[2:08:16] that this happens
[2:08:17] is different in every case
[2:08:18] it's fact intensive
[2:08:19] it depends on
[2:08:20] you're right
[2:08:21] who the defendant is
[2:08:22] it depends on
[2:08:22] whether he has counsel
[2:08:23] it depends on
[2:08:24] what the judge wants done
[2:08:25] and so I don't
[2:08:27] I don't know
[2:08:28] when the judge
[2:08:29] will schedule
[2:08:29] an initial arraignment
[2:08:31] if that will be
[2:08:32] scheduled by the magistrate
[2:08:33] or the district court judge
[2:08:33] I am sure
[2:08:34] I don't know
[2:08:35] if you want to speak
[2:08:36] to that
[2:08:36] or if it's just
[2:08:38] something that will come up
[2:08:39] in the next coming days
[2:08:40] you'll know when it happens
[2:08:41] as far as what
[2:08:42] Mr. Comey does
[2:08:43] between now and then
[2:08:44] I'm going to leave that up
[2:08:45] to the line prosecutors
[2:08:46] in the eastern district
[2:08:48] of North Carolina
[2:08:48] the FBI agents
[2:08:50] and the work that they're doing
[2:08:51] I want to explain why
[2:08:52] Director Patel
[2:08:53] maybe you said
[2:08:54] that it's a complicated thing
[2:08:55] a lot of people might think
[2:08:56] it's an easy case
[2:08:57] why did it take so long
[2:08:59] I know that you guys
[2:08:59] chose to go with this now
[2:09:01] but to the layman
[2:09:02] just looking at this case
[2:09:03] or layperson looking at the case
[2:09:05] it was an Instagram post
[2:09:06] he apologized
[2:09:07] why did it take so long
[2:09:09] well I'm not going to get into
[2:09:10] the details of the investigation itself
[2:09:12] but a lot of these cases
[2:09:13] you could look at
[2:09:14] when the threats were made
[2:09:16] and when charges are brought
[2:09:17] they're not easy cases
[2:09:19] and so we have to
[2:09:20] there's a communication
[2:09:22] that's sent
[2:09:22] allegedly in this case
[2:09:24] and so that means
[2:09:25] that we have to look at devices
[2:09:26] Mr. Comey is a lawyer
[2:09:29] he has lawyers
[2:09:30] so the extent that we're looking at
[2:09:31] materials that are potentially privileged
[2:09:34] we have to get a wall
[2:09:36] set up a wall
[2:09:37] and let totally independent lawyers
[2:09:39] look at those
[2:09:39] and so that doesn't happen
[2:09:41] overnight or quickly
[2:09:42] and the statute of limitations
[2:09:44] of this is five years
[2:09:45] we brought it in under one year
[2:09:46] so that's really where we're at
[2:09:48] Mr. Lee it's clear
[2:09:49] that you don't want to talk specifics today
[2:09:51] but to the American public
[2:09:53] can you at least give us a sense
[2:09:56] of whether you have hard evidence
[2:09:57] or evidence
[2:09:58] that shows that Mr. Comey
[2:10:00] intended for President Trump
[2:10:02] to be harmed
[2:10:03] and then secondarily
[2:10:04] for critics who say
[2:10:05] where does free speech
[2:10:07] free speech end
[2:10:09] and an actual threat
[2:10:11] of violence begin
[2:10:13] I don't know what critics say that
[2:10:16] especially today
[2:10:17] but it's not a very difficult line
[2:10:20] to look at
[2:10:21] and it's not in my mind
[2:10:22] a difficult line
[2:10:23] for one to cross over
[2:10:24] one way or the other
[2:10:25] we cannot
[2:10:26] you are not allowed to threaten
[2:10:28] the President of the United States of America
[2:10:30] that's not my decision
[2:10:31] that's Congress' decision
[2:10:33] in a statute that they passed
[2:10:35] that we charge multiple times a year
[2:10:37] and so whether
[2:10:38] whether there is a defense
[2:10:39] as you just described
[2:10:41] maybe
[2:10:41] maybe there is
[2:10:43] but but the government will have evidence
[2:10:44] I am not going to talk about
[2:10:45] the evidence that we have
[2:10:46] that's unfair to him
[2:10:47] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[2:10:49] but it's enough to say
[2:10:51] that the grand jury returned
[2:10:52] returned an indictment
[2:10:53] I'm just taking one more question
[2:10:54] thank you sir
[2:10:55] Mary Margaret with the Daily Wire
[2:10:56] should we expect more indictments
[2:10:58] of this sort
[2:10:59] for example in 2020
[2:11:00] Gretchen Whitmer did a TV hit
[2:11:02] with 8645 on her desk
[2:11:04] in the background
[2:11:05] is that the kind of thing
[2:11:06] you would pursue
[2:11:07] and then just really quickly
[2:11:08] should Comey expect
[2:11:10] to face more charges
[2:11:11] for his role in the Russia
[2:11:12] collusion investigations
[2:11:14] I'm not going to comment
[2:11:15] on other investigations
[2:11:16] involving Mr. Comey
[2:11:18] there's
[2:11:19] he's he had
[2:11:19] he was indicted
[2:11:20] in the East District of Virginia
[2:11:21] that was dismissed
[2:11:22] on procedural grounds
[2:11:23] because of the
[2:11:24] the judge's finding
[2:11:25] regarding the U.S. attorney
[2:11:26] so that case is under appeal
[2:11:28] as far as other
[2:11:29] investigations that are happening
[2:11:31] it would not be appropriate
[2:11:32] or fair for me to comment
[2:11:33] on that time
[2:11:34] as far as
[2:11:35] other incidents of threats
[2:11:36] against the president
[2:11:37] of the United States
[2:11:38] those will be investigated
[2:11:40] every case is different
[2:11:41] the facts are different
[2:11:42] who makes the threat matters
[2:11:44] what the threat says matters
[2:11:45] you're right
[2:11:46] the question about intent matters
[2:11:48] and we have to prove that
[2:11:49] that's something that's our job
[2:11:51] and that's something
[2:11:52] that prosecutors will have to do
[2:11:53] in front of a jury
[2:11:53] at the right time
[2:11:54] but you cannot compare
[2:11:56] it's not fair
[2:11:57] to the American people
[2:11:58] it's not fair to the defendant
[2:11:59] and it's certainly not fair
[2:12:00] to the prosecutors
[2:12:02] to compare
[2:12:03] well if you did it here
[2:12:04] why didn't you do it there
[2:12:05] every case is different
[2:12:07] but there's one thing
[2:12:08] that will never be different
[2:12:09] which is that
[2:12:10] you cannot threaten
[2:12:11] to kill the president
[2:12:12] of the United States
[2:12:13] full stop
[2:12:14] alright thanks a lot guys
[2:12:15] did President Trump
[2:12:17] Atlanta return
[2:12:17] an indictment
[2:12:18] against James Comey
[2:12:20] on two counts
[2:12:21] the first count
[2:12:23] is that on or about
[2:12:24] May 15th of last year
[2:12:26] he knowingly and willfully
[2:12:28] making a threat
[2:12:28] to take the life of
[2:12:29] and to inflict bodily harm
[2:12:31] upon the president
[2:12:33] of the United States
[2:12:34] count two
[2:12:35] same day
[2:12:36] May 15th 2025
[2:12:37] that the defendant
[2:12:39] James Comey
[2:12:40] knowingly and willfully
[2:12:41] transmitting
[2:12:42] in interstate commerce
[2:12:43] a communication
[2:12:44] that contained a threat
[2:12:45] to kill the president
[2:12:46] of the United States
[2:12:48] both of these counts
[2:12:49] carry a maximum term
[2:12:50] of imprisonment
[2:12:51] of 10 years
[2:12:53] so I think it's fair to say
[2:12:57] that threatening
[2:12:57] the life of anybody
[2:13:00] is dangerous
[2:13:02] and potentially a crime
[2:13:03] threatening the life
[2:13:05] of the president
[2:13:06] of the United States
[2:13:07] will never be tolerated
[2:13:08] by the Department of Justice
[2:13:10] over the past year
[2:13:12] this department
[2:13:14] has charged
[2:13:14] dozens of cases
[2:13:16] involving threats
[2:13:18] against all sorts
[2:13:19] of individuals
[2:13:20] we take these
[2:13:22] seriously
[2:13:23] every single one of them
[2:13:25] for example
[2:13:27] just today
[2:13:28] in the Northern District
[2:13:28] of Florida
[2:13:29] there was a guilty plea
[2:13:31] from an individual
[2:13:32] who threatened
[2:13:32] multiple political leaders
[2:13:34] including President Trump
[2:13:36] in the Eastern District
[2:13:38] of North Carolina
[2:13:38] where this case was indicted
[2:13:39] earlier today
[2:13:40] there are multiple
[2:13:42] threats cases
[2:13:43] very similar to this one
[2:13:45] including one
[2:13:46] where the defendant
[2:13:47] pled guilty recently
[2:13:48] to threatening
[2:13:49] former President Biden
[2:13:50] another one
[2:13:51] that's scheduled
[2:13:51] to go to trial
[2:13:52] this summer
[2:13:53] another one
[2:13:54] indicted
[2:13:55] an individual
[2:13:56] was indicted
[2:13:57] for threatening
[2:13:58] Tom Homan
[2:13:59] I say that to say
[2:14:02] that while this case
[2:14:05] is unique
[2:14:05] and this indictment
[2:14:06] stands out
[2:14:07] because of the name
[2:14:08] of the defendant
[2:14:08] his alleged conduct
[2:14:10] is the same kind
[2:14:11] of conduct
[2:14:12] that we will never
[2:14:13] tolerate
[2:14:13] and that we will
[2:14:15] always investigate
[2:14:16] and regularly prosecute
[2:14:18] I want to take a moment
[2:14:20] to thank the
[2:14:21] hardworking members
[2:14:23] of the FBI
[2:14:24] who investigated this case
[2:14:25] over the past
[2:14:26] 11 months or so
[2:14:28] the United States
[2:14:29] Secret Service
[2:14:30] who also assisted
[2:14:31] in this investigation
[2:14:32] and the United States
[2:14:33] Attorney's Office
[2:14:34] for the Eastern District
[2:14:36] of North Carolina
[2:14:36] led by United States
[2:14:38] Attorney Ellis Boyle
[2:14:39] who's standing
[2:14:40] to my right
[2:14:41] this was an investigation
[2:14:42] that remains ongoing
[2:14:44] that's been ongoing
[2:14:46] for about a year
[2:14:47] and that's all
[2:14:49] we're going to say
[2:14:50] about it today
[2:14:51] I will let
[2:14:52] the U.S. Attorney
[2:14:53] Boyle speak now
[2:14:54] and then after that
[2:14:55] Director Patel
[2:14:56] thank you
[2:14:57] thank you Mr. Attorney General
[2:15:03] earlier today
[2:15:05] a grand jury
[2:15:07] in the Eastern District
[2:15:08] of North Carolina
[2:15:09] returned a true bill
[2:15:10] indicting Mr. James Comey
[2:15:13] with committing
[2:15:14] two felonies
[2:15:15] count one
[2:15:16] he knowingly
[2:15:18] and willfully
[2:15:18] made a threat
[2:15:19] to kill
[2:15:20] and to inflict
[2:15:21] bodily harm
[2:15:22] upon the President
[2:15:23] of the United States
[2:15:24] in violation
[2:15:25] of 18 U.S.C.
[2:15:28] 871A
[2:15:29] count two
[2:15:32] he knowingly
[2:15:33] and willfully
[2:15:33] transmitted
[2:15:35] an interstate
[2:15:36] and foreign commerce
[2:15:37] a communication
[2:15:38] that contained
[2:15:40] a threat
[2:15:41] to kill
[2:15:42] President Trump
[2:15:43] in violation
[2:15:44] of 18 U.S.C.
[2:15:47] 875C
[2:15:49] Mr. Comey
[2:15:51] will be given
[2:15:51] every form
[2:15:53] of due process
[2:15:54] all citizens
[2:15:55] are entitled
[2:15:56] to receive
[2:15:57] to include
[2:15:58] a trial
[2:15:59] by a jury
[2:16:00] of his peers
[2:16:01] in the Eastern District
[2:16:03] of North Carolina
[2:16:04] it doesn't matter
[2:16:05] who you are
[2:16:06] we take all
[2:16:08] threat cases
[2:16:09] seriously
[2:16:10] and prosecute
[2:16:11] anyone who violates
[2:16:13] federal law
[2:16:14] regardless of title
[2:16:16] or status
[2:16:17] thank you
[2:16:19] thank you
[2:16:22] as you heard
[2:16:24] from the Attorney General
[2:16:24] the U.S. Attorney
[2:16:25] former FBI Director
[2:16:27] James Comey
[2:16:27] has now been indicted
[2:16:28] for two felony counts
[2:16:30] while many of you
[2:16:31] may read this indictment
[2:16:32] and view this matter
[2:16:33] as a simple investigation
[2:16:34] it is the farthest
[2:16:35] thing from that
[2:16:36] every single investigation
[2:16:37] this FBI
[2:16:38] and our partners
[2:16:39] at the Department of Justice
[2:16:40] undertake
[2:16:40] especially those
[2:16:42] that involve
[2:16:42] the threats
[2:16:43] to harm
[2:16:44] or hurt
[2:16:45] or even kill individuals
[2:16:46] whether they behold
[2:16:47] public office
[2:16:47] or civilians
[2:16:48] in our country
[2:16:49] are met
[2:16:50] with the same measure
[2:16:51] of investigative prowess
[2:16:52] and tools
[2:16:52] and personnel
[2:16:53] in partnership
[2:16:54] with the Department of Justice
[2:16:55] as anyone else
[2:16:55] as the U.S. Attorney indicated
[2:16:57] James Comey
[2:16:58] will be afforded
[2:16:59] every matter of due process
[2:17:00] under the United States Constitution
[2:17:02] and as the Attorney General
[2:17:03] indicated
[2:17:04] this has been a case
[2:17:05] that's been investigated
[2:17:05] over the past
[2:17:07] 9, 10, 11 months
[2:17:08] these cases take time
[2:17:10] our investigators
[2:17:11] work methodically
[2:17:12] they are career agents
[2:17:14] career prosecutors
[2:17:15] who work these matters
[2:17:16] they call the balls
[2:17:17] and strikes in the field
[2:17:18] as they see fit
[2:17:19] pursuant to the facts
[2:17:20] of the case
[2:17:20] and the law
[2:17:21] they took that information
[2:17:23] and made a presentment
[2:17:24] to a grand jury
[2:17:25] a jury of appears
[2:17:26] in the district
[2:17:27] in which the alleged crime
[2:17:28] took place
[2:17:28] and that grand jury
[2:17:30] spoke
[2:17:31] and that grand jury
[2:17:32] returned a two-count indictment
[2:17:33] against James Comey
[2:17:34] James Comey
[2:17:36] allegedly threatened
[2:17:37] the life of the President
[2:17:38] of the United States
[2:17:39] and as you all now know
[2:17:41] shortly after posting
[2:17:42] that threat
[2:17:44] he deleted
[2:17:45] that threat
[2:17:45] and then issued
[2:17:46] an apology
[2:17:47] all of that information
[2:17:48] was presented
[2:17:49] to the grand jury
[2:17:50] and Mr. Comey
[2:17:52] will have his day
[2:17:52] in court
[2:17:53] and his ability
[2:17:54] to speak to a jury
[2:17:56] of his peers
[2:17:56] thank you
[2:17:57] thank you
[2:18:00] we'll just take a couple
[2:18:01] of questions
[2:18:02] Mr. Attorney General
[2:18:04] the Justice Department
[2:18:07] in this filing
[2:18:08] today also issued
[2:18:09] an arrest warrant
[2:18:10] for Mr. Comey
[2:18:11] is it your belief
[2:18:13] that he is a
[2:18:14] continued public threat
[2:18:15] and is there
[2:18:17] is there a request
[2:18:18] also for detention
[2:18:20] that you anticipate
[2:18:21] will be made
[2:18:21] in this case
[2:18:22] so the Department of Justice
[2:18:24] does not issue
[2:18:25] arrest warrants
[2:18:26] grand juries do
[2:18:26] and so the grand jury
[2:18:28] returned an indictment
[2:18:29] and arrest warrant
[2:18:29] I expect that
[2:18:31] there will be
[2:18:32] communication
[2:18:32] like hundreds of others
[2:18:40] do every year
[2:18:41] there will be
[2:18:42] some sort of
[2:18:43] arraignment
[2:18:44] set by the judge
[2:18:45] or assigned
[2:18:46] to the magistrate judge
[2:18:47] and when that happens
[2:18:48] you'll know about it
[2:18:50] this is being handled
[2:18:52] differently
[2:18:52] from the last time
[2:18:53] he was indicted
[2:18:54] that's my reference
[2:18:55] in this case
[2:18:56] the Department requested
[2:18:58] an arrest warrant
[2:19:00] right
[2:19:00] well I don't think
[2:19:01] that it's public
[2:19:02] or clear
[2:19:02] what the Department
[2:19:03] requested
[2:19:04] the grand jury
[2:19:05] issued an arrest warrant
[2:19:07] go ahead
[2:19:07] yes
[2:19:08] sir
[2:19:09] how will you prove
[2:19:10] intent
[2:19:11] when as the Director
[2:19:12] had acknowledged
[2:19:13] Mr. Comey said
[2:19:15] he did not associate
[2:19:16] 86 with doing harm
[2:19:18] and he took it down
[2:19:19] promptly said
[2:19:19] it was political speech
[2:19:21] not an intent
[2:19:22] to harm the President
[2:19:22] well it's not
[2:19:24] it's not
[2:19:25] this case
[2:19:26] was indicted today
[2:19:27] this conduct
[2:19:28] occurred
[2:19:29] about a year ago
[2:19:30] May 15th of last year
[2:19:31] there's been a tremendous
[2:19:33] amount of investigation
[2:19:34] and how do you prove
[2:19:35] intent in any case
[2:19:36] you prove intent
[2:19:37] with witnesses
[2:19:37] with documents
[2:19:39] with the defendant
[2:19:40] himself
[2:19:41] to the extent
[2:19:41] to the extent
[2:19:42] it's appropriate
[2:19:42] and that's how
[2:19:43] we'll improve intent
[2:19:44] in this case
[2:19:45] and so
[2:19:45] I think that
[2:19:47] talking about
[2:19:47] what Mr. Comey
[2:19:50] will or will not do
[2:19:51] if there's a trial
[2:19:52] when there's a trial
[2:19:53] it's not
[2:19:53] is very premature
[2:19:54] for me to do that
[2:19:55] today
[2:19:55] General Blanche
[2:19:59] I want to ask you
[2:19:59] a quick question
[2:20:00] about there's
[2:20:00] a number of other
[2:20:01] different types
[2:20:02] of conduct
[2:20:03] Comey has been
[2:20:03] accused of
[2:20:04] over the past
[2:20:04] one of them
[2:20:05] is abuse
[2:20:06] of FISA warrants
[2:20:08] I wanted to ask
[2:20:08] if there's anything
[2:20:09] that we could
[2:20:09] talk about today
[2:20:10] in regards to that
[2:20:11] but on a separate
[2:20:12] matter
[2:20:12] if I may ask
[2:20:13] any more updates
[2:20:14] about the ballistics
[2:20:15] forensics analysis
[2:20:16] with the shooting
[2:20:17] that happened
[2:20:18] over the weekend
[2:20:18] so on the first
[2:20:19] question
[2:20:20] no
[2:20:20] nothing else
[2:20:21] to report
[2:20:22] about any
[2:20:22] investigations
[2:20:23] or anything
[2:20:24] involving Mr. Comey
[2:20:25] except the indictment
[2:20:26] that was returned
[2:20:27] today by the grand jury
[2:20:28] I don't have anything
[2:20:29] further to talk about
[2:20:30] with the ballistics
[2:20:31] that are still
[2:20:33] being analyzed
[2:20:33] and I said it
[2:20:34] yesterday
[2:20:35] and every law
[2:20:37] enforcement member
[2:20:39] who is speaking
[2:20:40] on this issue
[2:20:40] is saying the same
[2:20:41] thing as they should
[2:20:42] which is that
[2:20:43] this is an ongoing
[2:20:44] investigation
[2:20:44] with really
[2:20:45] really smart
[2:20:46] experts trying
[2:20:46] to understand
[2:20:47] what happened
[2:20:48] in that shooting
[2:20:49] and where the bullets
[2:20:50] went and ended up
[2:20:51] and where the bullets
[2:20:52] came from
[2:20:52] and once that is
[2:20:54] at a place
[2:20:55] where we can
[2:20:56] definitively say
[2:20:56] to the extent
[2:20:57] we can definitively say
[2:20:58] we will let you know
[2:21:00] Director Comey
[2:21:02] posted this
[2:21:03] almost a year ago
[2:21:04] why bring this case now
[2:21:05] did you always feel
[2:21:06] like this was a strong
[2:21:07] prosecution
[2:21:07] or did something
[2:21:08] change recently
[2:21:09] this investigation
[2:21:11] just didn't come now
[2:21:12] it's the result
[2:21:13] of a lot of work
[2:21:15] by law enforcement
[2:21:16] over the past year
[2:21:17] we don't time
[2:21:18] when we bring
[2:21:18] when we bring cases
[2:21:20] around anything
[2:21:20] other than when
[2:21:21] the investigation
[2:21:21] is at a place
[2:21:22] where we should go
[2:21:23] to the grand jury
[2:21:24] and that's exactly
[2:21:25] what we did
[2:21:26] in this case as well
[2:21:28] as a former FBI director
[2:21:30] you may not agree
[2:21:31] with what he did
[2:21:32] should he be able
[2:21:33] to turn himself in
[2:21:34] as a former FBI director
[2:21:36] he's not a flight risk
[2:21:37] I didn't say
[2:21:38] he can't turn himself in
[2:21:39] so he's not under arrest
[2:21:40] right now
[2:21:41] and he may be able
[2:21:41] to work out something
[2:21:42] I don't know
[2:21:42] whether he's under arrest
[2:21:43] right now
[2:21:43] I'm here talking to you
[2:21:44] the grand jury issued
[2:21:45] an arrest warrant
[2:21:45] I think that the way
[2:21:47] that this happens
[2:21:47] is different in every case
[2:21:49] it's fact intensive
[2:21:50] it depends on
[2:21:51] you're right
[2:21:51] who the defendant is
[2:21:52] it depends on whether
[2:21:53] he has counsel
[2:21:54] it depends on what
[2:21:55] the judge wants done
[2:21:56] and so I don't
[2:21:57] I don't know
[2:21:58] when the judge
[2:21:59] will schedule
[2:22:00] an initial arraignment
[2:22:01] if that will be scheduled
[2:22:02] by the magistrate
[2:22:03] or the district court judge
[2:22:04] I am sure
[2:22:04] I don't know
[2:22:05] if you want to speak
[2:22:06] to that
[2:22:07] or if it's just something
[2:22:09] that will come up
[2:22:09] in the next coming days
[2:22:10] you'll know when it happens
[2:22:11] as far as what
[2:22:12] Mr. Comey does
[2:22:13] between now and then
[2:22:14] I'm going to leave that up
[2:22:16] to the line prosecutors
[2:22:17] in the eastern district
[2:22:18] of North Carolina
[2:22:19] the FBI agents
[2:22:20] and the work
[2:22:21] that they're doing
[2:22:21] I want to explain
[2:22:22] why
[2:22:22] Director Patel
[2:22:24] maybe you said
[2:22:24] that it's a complicated thing
[2:22:26] a lot of people might think
[2:22:26] it's an easy case
[2:22:27] why did it take so long
[2:22:29] I know that you guys
[2:22:30] chose to go with this now
[2:22:31] but to the layman
[2:22:32] just looking at this case
[2:22:33] or layperson
[2:22:34] looking at the case
[2:22:35] it was an Instagram post
[2:22:37] he apologized
[2:22:37] why did it take so long
[2:22:39] well I'm not going to get
[2:22:40] into the details
[2:22:41] of the investigation itself
[2:22:43] but a lot of these cases
[2:22:44] you could look at
[2:22:45] when the threats were made
[2:22:46] and when charges are brought
[2:22:48] they're not easy cases
[2:22:49] and so we have to
[2:22:50] there's a communication
[2:22:52] that's sent
[2:22:53] allegedly in this case
[2:22:54] and so that means
[2:22:55] that we have to look
[2:22:56] at devices
[2:22:57] Mr. Comey
[2:22:58] is a lawyer
[2:22:59] he has lawyers
[2:23:00] so the extent
[2:23:01] that we're looking at
[2:23:02] materials that
[2:23:03] are potentially privileged
[2:23:05] we have to
[2:23:05] get a wall
[2:23:06] set up a wall
[2:23:07] and let totally
[2:23:08] independent lawyers
[2:23:09] look at those
[2:23:10] and so that doesn't happen
[2:23:11] overnight or quickly
[2:23:12] and the satchel
[2:23:14] limitations of this
[2:23:14] is five years
[2:23:15] we brought it in under
[2:23:16] one year
[2:23:17] so that's really
[2:23:18] where we're at
[2:23:18] Mr. Lee it's clear
[2:23:20] that you don't want
[2:23:20] to talk specifics today
[2:23:22] but to the American public
[2:23:24] can you at least
[2:23:25] give us a sense
[2:23:26] of whether you have
[2:23:27] hard evidence
[2:23:27] or evidence
[2:23:28] that shows that
[2:23:30] Mr. Comey intended
[2:23:31] for President Trump
[2:23:33] to be harmed
[2:23:33] and then secondarily
[2:23:34] for critics who say
[2:23:36] where does
[2:23:37] free speech
[2:23:38] end
[2:23:39] and an actual threat
[2:23:41] of violence
[2:23:42] begin
[2:23:44] I don't know
[2:23:45] what critics say that
[2:23:46] especially today
[2:23:47] but it's not a very
[2:23:49] difficult line
[2:23:50] to look at
[2:23:51] and it's not
[2:23:52] in my mind
[2:23:53] a difficult line
[2:23:54] for one to cross over
[2:23:55] one way or the other
[2:23:56] we cannot
[2:23:57] you are not allowed
[2:23:58] to threaten
[2:23:59] the President
[2:23:59] of the United States
[2:24:00] of America
[2:24:00] that's not my decision
[2:24:02] that's Congress' decision
[2:24:03] in a statute
[2:24:04] that they passed
[2:24:05] that we charge
[2:24:06] multiple times a year
[2:24:07] and so whether
[2:24:08] whether there is
[2:24:09] a defense
[2:24:10] as you just described
[2:24:11] maybe
[2:24:12] maybe there is
[2:24:13] but the government
[2:24:14] will have evidence
[2:24:14] I am not going to talk
[2:24:15] about the evidence
[2:24:16] that we have
[2:24:16] that's unfair to him
[2:24:18] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[2:24:20] but it's enough to say
[2:24:21] that the grand jury
[2:24:22] returned an indictment
[2:24:23] I'm just going to take
[2:24:24] one more question
[2:24:24] thank you sir
[2:24:25] Mary Margaret
[2:24:26] with the Daily Wire
[2:24:27] should we expect
[2:24:28] more indictments
[2:24:29] of this sort
[2:24:29] for example
[2:24:30] in 2020
[2:24:30] Gretchen Whitmer
[2:24:31] did a TV hit
[2:24:32] with 8645
[2:24:33] on her desk
[2:24:34] in the background
[2:24:35] is that the kind
[2:24:36] of thing you would pursue
[2:24:37] and then just really quickly
[2:24:38] should Comey expect
[2:24:40] to face more charges
[2:24:42] for his role
[2:24:42] in the Russia
[2:24:43] collusion investigations
[2:24:44] I'm not going to comment
[2:24:46] on other investigations
[2:24:46] involving Mr. Comey
[2:24:49] there's
[2:24:49] he's he had
[2:24:50] he was indicted
[2:24:51] in the East District of Virginia
[2:24:51] that was dismissed
[2:24:52] on procedural grounds
[2:24:53] because of the
[2:24:54] the judge's finding
[2:24:55] regarding the U.S. attorney
[2:24:56] so that case is under appeal
[2:24:58] as far as other
[2:24:59] investigations that are happening
[2:25:01] it would not be appropriate
[2:25:02] or fair for me
[2:25:03] to comment on that time
[2:25:04] as far as other
[2:25:06] instances of threats
[2:25:07] against the president
[2:25:07] of the United States
[2:25:08] those will be investigated
[2:25:10] every case is different
[2:25:11] the facts are different
[2:25:12] who makes the threat matters
[2:25:14] what the threat says matters
[2:25:15] you're right
[2:25:17] the question about intent matters
[2:25:18] and we have to prove that
[2:25:20] that's something
[2:25:20] that's our job
[2:25:21] and that's something
[2:25:22] that prosecutors
[2:25:23] will have to do
[2:25:23] in front of a jury
[2:25:24] at the right time
[2:25:25] but you cannot compare
[2:25:26] it's not fair
[2:25:27] to the American people
[2:25:28] it's not fair
[2:25:29] to the defendant
[2:25:29] and it's certainly
[2:25:30] not fair to
[2:25:31] to the prosecutors
[2:25:32] to compare
[2:25:33] well if you did it here
[2:25:35] why didn't you do it there
[2:25:36] every case is different
[2:25:38] but there's one thing
[2:25:39] that will never be different
[2:25:40] which is that
[2:25:40] you cannot threaten
[2:25:42] to kill the president
[2:25:43] of the United States
[2:25:43] full stop
[2:25:44] all right
[2:25:45] thanks a lot guys
[2:25:46] did president trump
[2:25:47] lana returned
[2:25:48] an indictment against
[2:25:49] james comey
[2:25:51] on two counts
[2:25:51] the first count
[2:25:53] is that on or about
[2:25:54] may 15th of last year
[2:25:56] he knowingly
[2:25:57] and willfully
[2:25:58] making a threat
[2:25:59] to take the life of
[2:26:00] and to inflict
[2:26:01] bodily harm upon
[2:26:02] the president
[2:26:03] of the united states
[2:26:04] count two
[2:26:05] same day
[2:26:06] may 15th
[2:26:07] 2025
[2:26:08] that the defendant
[2:26:09] james comey
[2:26:10] knowingly and willfully
[2:26:11] transmitting
[2:26:12] in interstate commerce
[2:26:13] a communication
[2:26:14] that contained a threat
[2:26:16] to kill the president
[2:26:17] of the united states
[2:26:18] both of these counts
[2:26:19] carry a maximum term
[2:26:20] of imprisonment
[2:26:22] of 10 years
[2:26:23] so I think it's fair
[2:26:27] to say that threatening
[2:26:28] the life of anybody
[2:26:30] is dangerous
[2:26:32] and potentially a crime
[2:26:34] threatening the life
[2:26:35] of the president
[2:26:36] of the united states
[2:26:37] will never be tolerated
[2:26:39] by the department
[2:26:40] of justice
[2:26:41] over the past year
[2:26:43] this department
[2:26:44] has charged
[2:26:45] dozens of cases
[2:26:46] involving threats
[2:26:48] against all sorts
[2:26:50] of individuals
[2:26:51] we take these
[2:26:52] seriously
[2:26:53] every single one
[2:26:55] of them
[2:26:55] for example
[2:26:57] just today
[2:26:58] in the northern district
[2:26:59] of florida
[2:26:59] there was a guilty plea
[2:27:01] from an individual
[2:27:02] who threatened
[2:27:02] multiple political leaders
[2:27:04] including
[2:27:05] president trump
[2:27:06] in the eastern district
[2:27:08] of north carolina
[2:27:09] where this case
[2:27:09] was indicted earlier today
[2:27:11] there are multiple
[2:27:12] threats cases
[2:27:13] very similar to this one
[2:27:15] including one
[2:27:16] where the defendant
[2:27:17] pled guilty recently
[2:27:18] to threatening
[2:27:19] former president biden
[2:27:20] another one
[2:27:21] that's scheduled
[2:27:22] to go to trial
[2:27:23] this summer
[2:27:23] another one
[2:27:24] indicted
[2:27:25] an individual
[2:27:26] was divided
[2:27:27] was indicted
[2:27:27] for threatening
[2:27:28] tom homan
[2:27:30] I say that to say
[2:27:32] that while this case
[2:27:35] is unique
[2:27:36] and this indictment
[2:27:37] stands out
[2:27:37] because of the name
[2:27:38] of the defendant
[2:27:38] his alleged conduct
[2:27:40] is the same kind
[2:27:41] of conduct
[2:27:42] that we will never
[2:27:43] tolerate
[2:27:44] and that we will
[2:27:45] always investigate
[2:27:46] and regularly prosecute
[2:27:48] I want to take a moment
[2:27:50] to to thank the
[2:27:52] hard-working members
[2:27:53] of the fbi
[2:27:54] who investigated this case
[2:27:55] over the past
[2:27:57] 11 months or so
[2:27:58] the united states
[2:27:59] secret service
[2:28:00] who also assisted
[2:28:01] in this investigation
[2:28:02] and the united states
[2:28:03] attorney's office
[2:28:04] for the eastern district
[2:28:06] of north carolina
[2:28:07] led by united states
[2:28:08] attorney ellis boyle
[2:28:10] who's standing
[2:28:10] to my right
[2:28:11] this was an investigation
[2:28:13] that remains ongoing
[2:28:15] that's been ongoing
[2:28:16] for about a year
[2:28:17] and that's all
[2:28:19] we're going to say
[2:28:20] about it today
[2:28:21] I will let the
[2:28:22] u.s attorney
[2:28:23] boyle speak now
[2:28:25] and then after that
[2:28:26] director patel
[2:28:27] thank you
[2:28:27] thank you mr
[2:28:32] attorney general
[2:28:33] earlier today
[2:28:36] a grand jury
[2:28:37] in the eastern district
[2:28:38] of north carolina
[2:28:39] returned a true bill
[2:28:41] indicting mr james comey
[2:28:43] with committing
[2:28:44] two felonies
[2:28:45] count one
[2:28:46] he knowingly
[2:28:48] and willfully
[2:28:49] made a threat
[2:28:49] to kill
[2:28:50] and to inflict
[2:28:51] bodily harm
[2:28:52] upon the president
[2:28:53] of the united states
[2:28:54] in violation
[2:28:56] of eighteen
[2:28:57] u.s.c.
[2:28:58] eight seven
[2:28:59] one a
[2:29:00] count two
[2:29:02] he knowingly
[2:29:03] and willfully
[2:29:04] transmitted
[2:29:05] an interstate
[2:29:06] and foreign
[2:29:07] commerce
[2:29:08] a communication
[2:29:09] that contained
[2:29:10] a threat
[2:29:11] to kill
[2:29:12] president trump
[2:29:13] in violation
[2:29:14] of eighteen
[2:29:16] u.s.c.
[2:29:17] eight seven
[2:29:18] five c
[2:29:19] mr comey
[2:29:21] will be given
[2:29:22] every form
[2:29:23] of due process
[2:29:24] all citizens
[2:29:26] are entitled
[2:29:26] to receive
[2:29:27] to include
[2:29:29] a trial
[2:29:29] by a jury
[2:29:30] of his peers
[2:29:31] in the eastern
[2:29:33] district of north carolina
[2:29:35] it doesn't matter
[2:29:36] who you are
[2:29:36] we take all
[2:29:38] threat cases
[2:29:39] seriously
[2:29:40] and prosecute
[2:29:42] anyone who
[2:29:43] violates federal law
[2:29:45] regardless of title
[2:29:46] or status
[2:29:47] thank you
[2:29:50] thank you
[2:29:53] as you heard
[2:29:54] from the attorney general
[2:29:55] the u.s. attorney
[2:29:56] former fbi director
[2:29:57] james comey
[2:29:58] has now been indicted
[2:29:58] for two felony counts
[2:30:00] while many of you
[2:30:01] may read this indictment
[2:30:02] and view this matter
[2:30:03] as a simple investigation
[2:30:05] it is the farthest
[2:30:06] thing from that
[2:30:06] every single investigation
[2:30:08] this fbi
[2:30:08] and our partners
[2:30:09] at the department
[2:30:09] of justice
[2:30:10] undertake
[2:30:11] especially those
[2:30:12] that involve
[2:30:12] the threats to
[2:30:13] harm or hurt
[2:30:15] or even kill
[2:30:16] individuals
[2:30:16] whether they behold
[2:30:17] public office
[2:30:18] or civilians
[2:30:18] in our country
[2:30:19] are met
[2:30:20] with the same measure
[2:30:21] of investigative prowess
[2:30:22] and tools
[2:30:23] and personnel
[2:30:23] in partnership
[2:30:24] with the department
[2:30:25] of justice
[2:30:25] as anyone else
[2:30:26] as the u.s. attorney
[2:30:27] indicated
[2:30:28] james comey
[2:30:28] will be afforded
[2:30:29] every matter
[2:30:30] of due process
[2:30:31] under the united
[2:30:31] states constitution
[2:30:32] and as the attorney
[2:30:33] general indicated
[2:30:34] this has been a case
[2:30:35] that's been investigated
[2:30:36] over the past
[2:30:37] 9 10 11 months
[2:30:38] these cases take time
[2:30:40] our investigators
[2:30:41] work methodically
[2:30:42] they are career agents
[2:30:44] career prosecutors
[2:30:45] who work these matters
[2:30:46] they call the balls
[2:30:47] and strikes in the field
[2:30:48] as they see fit
[2:30:49] pursuant to the facts
[2:30:50] of the case
[2:30:51] and the law
[2:30:51] they took that information
[2:30:53] and made a presentment
[2:30:54] to a grand jury
[2:30:55] a jury of appears
[2:30:56] in the district
[2:30:57] in which the alleged
[2:30:58] crime took place
[2:30:59] and that grand jury
[2:31:00] spoke
[2:31:01] and that grand jury
[2:31:02] returned a two count
[2:31:03] indictment
[2:31:04] against james comey
[2:31:05] james comey
[2:31:06] allegedly threatened
[2:31:08] the life of the
[2:31:08] president of the united states
[2:31:10] and as you all now know
[2:31:11] shortly after posting
[2:31:13] that threat
[2:31:14] he deleted
[2:31:15] that threat
[2:31:16] and then issued
[2:31:17] an apology
[2:31:17] all of that information
[2:31:19] was presented
[2:31:19] to the grand jury
[2:31:20] and mr comey
[2:31:22] will have his day
[2:31:23] in court
[2:31:23] and his ability
[2:31:24] to speak to
[2:31:25] a jury of his peers
[2:31:27] thank you
[2:31:27] thank you
[2:31:30] we'll just take
[2:31:31] a couple of questions
[2:31:32] mr general
[2:31:34] the um
[2:31:35] the justice department
[2:31:37] in this filing
[2:31:38] today also issued
[2:31:39] an arrest warrant
[2:31:40] for mr comey
[2:31:42] is it your belief
[2:31:43] that uh
[2:31:44] that he is a
[2:31:44] continued public threat
[2:31:46] um
[2:31:47] and is there
[2:31:47] is there a request
[2:31:49] also for detention
[2:31:50] that you anticipate
[2:31:51] will be made
[2:31:52] in this case
[2:31:52] so the department
[2:31:54] of justice
[2:31:55] does not issue
[2:31:55] arrest warrants
[2:31:56] grand juries do
[2:31:57] and so the grand jury
[2:31:58] returned an indictment
[2:31:59] and arrest warrant
[2:32:00] i expect um
[2:32:01] that there will be
[2:32:02] communication
[2:32:03] like um
[2:32:09] hundreds of others
[2:32:10] do every year
[2:32:11] there will be um
[2:32:13] some sort of
[2:32:14] arraignment set
[2:32:15] by the judge
[2:32:15] or assigned
[2:32:16] to the magistrate judge
[2:32:17] and when that happens
[2:32:18] um
[2:32:19] you'll know about it
[2:32:20] this is being handled
[2:32:22] differently from the last
[2:32:23] time he was indicted
[2:32:25] that's my reference
[2:32:26] uh in this case
[2:32:26] the department requested
[2:32:28] uh uh an arrest warrant
[2:32:30] right
[2:32:30] well i don't think
[2:32:31] that it's public
[2:32:32] or clear what the
[2:32:33] department requested
[2:32:34] the grand jury
[2:32:36] um issued an arrest warrant
[2:32:37] go ahead
[2:32:38] yes
[2:32:38] sir how will you prove
[2:32:40] intent when
[2:32:42] as the director
[2:32:43] had acknowledged
[2:32:44] mr comey said
[2:32:45] he did not associate
[2:32:46] date 86 with doing harm
[2:32:48] and he took it down
[2:32:49] promptly said
[2:32:50] it was political speech
[2:32:51] not an intent
[2:32:52] to harm the president
[2:32:53] well
[2:32:54] it's not
[2:32:55] it's not
[2:32:55] this this case
[2:32:56] was indicted today
[2:32:57] this conduct
[2:32:58] occurred
[2:32:59] about a year ago
[2:33:00] may 15th of last year
[2:33:02] there's been a tremendous
[2:33:03] amount of investigation
[2:33:04] and how do you prove
[2:33:05] intent in any case
[2:33:06] you prove intent
[2:33:07] with witnesses
[2:33:08] with documents
[2:33:09] um with the defendant
[2:33:10] himself to the extent
[2:33:11] to the extent
[2:33:12] it's appropriate
[2:33:13] and that's how
[2:33:14] we'll improve
[2:33:14] intent in this case
[2:33:15] and so i i think
[2:33:17] that talking about
[2:33:18] um what mr comey
[2:33:20] will or will not do
[2:33:21] if there's a trial
[2:33:22] when there's a trial
[2:33:23] it's not
[2:33:24] it's very premature
[2:33:25] for me to do that today
[2:33:26] general blinch
[2:33:29] i want to ask you
[2:33:29] a quick question about
[2:33:30] there's a number
[2:33:31] of other different
[2:33:32] types of conduct
[2:33:33] comey has been accused
[2:33:34] of over the past
[2:33:35] one of them is
[2:33:36] abuse of fisa
[2:33:37] uh warrants
[2:33:38] i wanted to ask
[2:33:39] if there's anything
[2:33:39] that we could
[2:33:40] you know talk about
[2:33:40] today
[2:33:41] regards to that
[2:33:42] but on a separate
[2:33:42] matter
[2:33:43] if i may ask
[2:33:44] any more updates
[2:33:45] about the ballistics
[2:33:46] forensics analysis
[2:33:47] with the shooting
[2:33:48] that happened
[2:33:48] over the weekend
[2:33:49] so on the first question
[2:33:50] no there's nothing else
[2:33:51] to report about
[2:33:52] any investigations
[2:33:53] or anything involving
[2:33:55] mr comey
[2:33:56] except the indictment
[2:33:57] that was returned
[2:33:57] today by the grand jury
[2:33:58] i don't have anything
[2:34:00] further to talk about
[2:34:01] with the ballistics
[2:34:02] that are still
[2:34:03] being analyzed
[2:34:04] and i said it
[2:34:05] yesterday
[2:34:05] and every law enforcement
[2:34:08] member who is speaking
[2:34:10] on this issue
[2:34:11] is saying the same
[2:34:11] thing as they should
[2:34:12] which is that
[2:34:13] this is an ongoing
[2:34:14] investigation
[2:34:15] with really really
[2:34:16] smart experts
[2:34:16] trying to understand
[2:34:17] what happened
[2:34:18] in that shooting
[2:34:19] and where the bullets
[2:34:20] went and ended up
[2:34:21] and where the bullets
[2:34:22] came from
[2:34:23] and once that is
[2:34:24] at a place
[2:34:25] where we can
[2:34:26] definitively say
[2:34:27] to the extent
[2:34:27] we can definitively say
[2:34:29] we will
[2:34:29] we will let you know
[2:34:30] director comey posted
[2:34:33] this almost a year ago
[2:34:34] why bring this case
[2:34:35] now did you always feel
[2:34:36] like this was a strong
[2:34:37] prosecution
[2:34:38] or did something
[2:34:38] change recently
[2:34:39] this this investigation
[2:34:41] just didn't come now
[2:34:42] it's the result of
[2:34:43] of of a lot of work
[2:34:45] by law enforcement
[2:34:46] over the past year
[2:34:47] we don't time
[2:34:48] when we bring
[2:34:49] when we bring cases
[2:34:50] around anything
[2:34:51] other than when
[2:34:51] the investigation
[2:34:52] is at a place
[2:34:52] where we should go
[2:34:54] to the grand jury
[2:34:54] and that's exactly
[2:34:55] what we did
[2:34:56] in in this case
[2:34:58] as well
[2:34:58] as a former
[2:34:59] fbi director
[2:35:01] you may not agree
[2:35:02] with what he did
[2:35:02] should he be able
[2:35:03] to turn himself in
[2:35:04] as a former
[2:35:05] fbi director
[2:35:06] he's not a flight risk
[2:35:07] I didn't say he can't
[2:35:09] turn himself in
[2:35:09] so he's not under
[2:35:10] arrest right now
[2:35:11] and he may be able
[2:35:12] to work out
[2:35:12] I don't know
[2:35:12] whether he's under
[2:35:13] arrest right now
[2:35:13] I'm here talking to you
[2:35:14] the grand jury
[2:35:15] issued an arrest warrant
[2:35:16] I think that the way
[2:35:17] that this happens
[2:35:18] is different in every case
[2:35:19] it's fact intensive
[2:35:20] it depends on
[2:35:21] you're right
[2:35:22] who the defendant is
[2:35:23] it depends on
[2:35:23] whether he has counsel
[2:35:24] it depends on
[2:35:25] what the judge wants done
[2:35:26] and so I don't
[2:35:27] I don't know
[2:35:29] when the judge
[2:35:29] will schedule
[2:35:30] an initial arraignment
[2:35:31] if that will be
[2:35:32] scheduled by the magistrate
[2:35:33] or the district court judge
[2:35:34] I am sure
[2:35:35] I don't know
[2:35:35] if you want to speak
[2:35:37] to that
[2:35:37] or if it's just
[2:35:39] something that will come up
[2:35:39] in the next coming days
[2:35:41] you'll know when it happens
[2:35:42] as far as what
[2:35:42] Mr. Comey does
[2:35:44] between now and then
[2:35:45] I'm going to leave that up
[2:35:46] to the line prosecutors
[2:35:47] in the eastern district
[2:35:48] of North Carolina
[2:35:49] the fbi agents
[2:35:50] and the work that they're doing
[2:35:52] why director patel
[2:35:54] maybe you said
[2:35:55] that it's a complicated thing
[2:35:56] a lot of people might think
[2:35:57] it's an easy case
[2:35:58] why did it take so long
[2:35:59] I know that you guys
[2:36:00] chose to go with this now
[2:36:01] but to the layman
[2:36:02] just looking at this case
[2:36:04] or layperson looking at the case
[2:36:05] it was an Instagram post
[2:36:07] he apologized
[2:36:08] why did it take so long
[2:36:09] well I'm not going to get
[2:36:11] into the details
[2:36:11] of the investigation itself
[2:36:13] but a lot of these cases
[2:36:14] you could look at
[2:36:15] when the threats were made
[2:36:16] and when charges are brought
[2:36:18] they're not easy cases
[2:36:20] and so we have to
[2:36:21] there's a communication
[2:36:22] that's sent
[2:36:23] allegedly in this case
[2:36:24] and so that means
[2:36:26] that we have to look
[2:36:26] at devices
[2:36:27] Mr. Comey
[2:36:28] is a lawyer
[2:36:29] he has lawyers
[2:36:31] so the extent
[2:36:31] that we're looking at
[2:36:32] at materials
[2:36:33] that are potentially privileged
[2:36:35] we have to get a wall
[2:36:37] set up a wall
[2:36:38] and let totally independent
[2:36:39] lawyers look at those
[2:36:40] and so that doesn't happen
[2:36:41] overnight or quickly
[2:36:42] and the satchel limitations
[2:36:44] of this is five years
[2:36:45] we brought it in under one year
[2:36:47] so that's really where we're at
[2:36:49] Mr. Lee it's clear
[2:36:50] that you don't want to talk
[2:36:51] specifics today
[2:36:52] but to the American public
[2:36:54] can you at least give us
[2:36:56] a sense of whether you have
[2:36:57] hard evidence
[2:36:58] or evidence
[2:36:58] that shows that
[2:37:00] Mr. Comey intended
[2:37:01] for President Trump
[2:37:03] to be harmed
[2:37:04] and then secondarily
[2:37:05] for critics who say
[2:37:06] where does free speech
[2:37:08] free speech end
[2:37:09] and an actual threat
[2:37:11] of violence begin
[2:37:14] I don't know what
[2:37:15] critics say that
[2:37:17] especially today
[2:37:18] but it's not a very
[2:37:19] difficult line
[2:37:21] to look at
[2:37:22] and it's not in my mind
[2:37:23] a difficult line
[2:37:24] for one to cross over
[2:37:25] one way or the other
[2:37:26] we cannot
[2:37:27] you are not allowed
[2:37:28] to threaten
[2:37:29] the president
[2:37:30] of the United States
[2:37:30] of America
[2:37:31] that's not my decision
[2:37:32] that's Congress's decision
[2:37:34] in a statute
[2:37:34] that they passed
[2:37:35] that we charge
[2:37:36] multiple times a year
[2:37:38] and so whether
[2:37:39] whether there is a defense
[2:37:40] as you just described
[2:37:41] maybe
[2:37:42] maybe there is
[2:37:43] but but the government
[2:37:44] will have evidence
[2:37:44] I am not going to talk
[2:37:45] about the evidence
[2:37:46] that we have
[2:37:46] that's unfair to him
[2:37:48] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[2:37:50] but it's enough to say
[2:37:51] that the grand jury
[2:37:52] returned returned
[2:37:53] an indictment
[2:37:54] I'm just taking
[2:37:54] one more question
[2:37:55] thank you sir
[2:37:56] Mary Margaret with the Daily Wire
[2:37:57] should we expect
[2:37:58] more indictments
[2:37:59] of this sort
[2:38:00] for example
[2:38:00] in 2020
[2:38:01] Gretchen Whitmer
[2:38:01] did a TV hit
[2:38:02] with 8645
[2:38:04] on her desk
[2:38:05] in the background
[2:38:05] is that the kind
[2:38:07] of thing you would pursue
[2:38:07] and then just really quickly
[2:38:09] should Comey expect
[2:38:11] to face more charges
[2:38:12] for his role
[2:38:13] in the Russia
[2:38:13] collusion investigations
[2:38:15] I'm not going to comment
[2:38:16] on other investigations
[2:38:17] involving Mr. Comey
[2:38:19] there's he's he had
[2:38:20] he was indicted
[2:38:21] in the East District of Virginia
[2:38:22] that was dismissed
[2:38:23] on procedural grounds
[2:38:24] because of the the judge's
[2:38:25] finding regarding
[2:38:26] the U.S. attorney
[2:38:27] so that case is under appeal
[2:38:29] as far as other investigations
[2:38:31] that are happening
[2:38:31] it would not be appropriate
[2:38:33] or fair for me
[2:38:33] to comment on that time
[2:38:35] as far as other instances
[2:38:36] of threats
[2:38:37] against the president
[2:38:38] of the United States
[2:38:38] those will be investigated
[2:38:40] every case is different
[2:38:41] the facts are different
[2:38:43] who makes the threat matters
[2:38:44] what the threat says matters
[2:38:46] you're you're right
[2:38:47] the question about intent matters
[2:38:49] and we have to prove that
[2:38:50] that's something
[2:38:51] that's our job
[2:38:51] and that's something
[2:38:52] that prosecutors
[2:38:53] will have to do
[2:38:53] in front of a jury
[2:38:54] at the right time
[2:38:55] but you cannot compare
[2:38:56] it's not fair
[2:38:57] to the American people
[2:38:58] it's not fair to the defendant
[2:39:00] and it's certainly not fair
[2:39:01] to to the prosecutors
[2:39:03] to compare
[2:39:03] well if you did it here
[2:39:05] why didn't you do it there
[2:39:06] every every case is different
[2:39:08] but there's one thing
[2:39:09] that will never be different
[2:39:10] which is that
[2:39:11] you cannot threaten
[2:39:12] to kill the president
[2:39:13] of the United States
[2:39:14] full stop
[2:39:15] all right thanks a lot guys
[2:39:16] did president trump
[2:39:17] Atlanta returned
[2:39:18] an indictment against
[2:39:19] James Comey
[2:39:21] on two counts
[2:39:22] the first count
[2:39:23] is that on or about
[2:39:24] May 15th of last year
[2:39:26] he knowingly
[2:39:28] and willfully
[2:39:28] making a threat
[2:39:29] to take the life of
[2:39:30] and to inflict bodily harm
[2:39:32] upon the president
[2:39:34] of the United States
[2:39:35] count two
[2:39:35] same day
[2:39:36] May 15th 2025
[2:39:38] that the defendant
[2:39:40] James Comey
[2:39:40] knowingly and willfully
[2:39:42] transmitting in interstate commerce
[2:39:43] a communication
[2:39:44] that contained a threat
[2:39:46] to kill the president
[2:39:47] of the United States
[2:39:49] both of these counts
[2:39:50] carry a maximum term
[2:39:51] of imprisonment
[2:39:51] of 10 years
[2:39:54] so I think it's fair to say
[2:39:57] that threatening
[2:39:58] the life of anybody
[2:40:00] is dangerous
[2:40:02] and potentially a crime
[2:40:04] threatening the life
[2:40:06] of the president
[2:40:07] of the United States
[2:40:08] will never be tolerated
[2:40:09] by the Department of Justice
[2:40:11] over the past year
[2:40:13] this department
[2:40:14] has charged
[2:40:15] dozens of cases
[2:40:17] involving threats
[2:40:18] against all sorts
[2:40:20] of individuals
[2:40:21] we take these
[2:40:22] seriously
[2:40:24] every single one of them
[2:40:25] for example
[2:40:28] just today
[2:40:28] in the Northern District
[2:40:29] of Florida
[2:40:30] there was a guilty plea
[2:40:31] from an individual
[2:40:32] who threatened
[2:40:33] multiple political leaders
[2:40:34] including
[2:40:35] President Trump
[2:40:36] in the Eastern District
[2:40:38] of North Carolina
[2:40:39] where this case
[2:40:40] was indicted earlier today
[2:40:41] there are multiple threats cases
[2:40:44] very similar to this one
[2:40:45] including one
[2:40:46] where the defendant
[2:40:47] pled guilty recently
[2:40:49] to threatening
[2:40:49] former President Biden
[2:40:50] another one that's scheduled
[2:40:52] to go to trial
[2:40:53] this summer
[2:40:54] another one
[2:40:54] indicted
[2:40:55] an individual was divided
[2:40:57] was indicted
[2:40:58] for threatening
[2:40:58] Tom Homan
[2:41:00] I say that to say
[2:41:03] that while this case
[2:41:05] is unique
[2:41:06] and this indictment
[2:41:07] stands out
[2:41:08] because of the name
[2:41:08] of the defendant
[2:41:09] his alleged conduct
[2:41:11] is the same kind
[2:41:12] of conduct
[2:41:12] that we will never tolerate
[2:41:14] and that we will always
[2:41:16] investigate
[2:41:16] and regularly prosecute
[2:41:18] I want to take a moment
[2:41:20] to thank the
[2:41:22] hardworking members
[2:41:24] of the FBI
[2:41:24] who investigated this case
[2:41:26] over the past
[2:41:27] 11 months or so
[2:41:28] the United States
[2:41:30] Secret Service
[2:41:30] who also assisted
[2:41:31] in this investigation
[2:41:32] and the United States
[2:41:34] Attorney's Office
[2:41:35] for the Eastern District
[2:41:36] of North Carolina
[2:41:37] led by United States
[2:41:39] Attorney Ellis Boyle
[2:41:40] who's standing to my right
[2:41:41] this was an investigation
[2:41:43] that remains ongoing
[2:41:45] that's been ongoing
[2:41:47] for about a year
[2:41:48] and that's all
[2:41:50] we're going to say
[2:41:50] about it today
[2:41:51] I will let
[2:41:52] the U.S. Attorney
[2:41:53] Boyle speak now
[2:41:55] and then after that
[2:41:56] Director Patel
[2:41:57] thank you
[2:41:58] thank you Mr. Attorney General
[2:42:04] earlier today
[2:42:06] a grand jury
[2:42:07] in the Eastern District
[2:42:09] of North Carolina
[2:42:09] returned a true bill
[2:42:11] indicting Mr. James Comey
[2:42:13] with committing two felonies
[2:42:16] count one
[2:42:17] he knowingly
[2:42:18] and willfully
[2:42:19] made a threat
[2:42:20] to kill
[2:42:20] and to inflict bodily harm
[2:42:23] upon the President
[2:42:23] of the United States
[2:42:25] in violation
[2:42:26] of 18 U.S.C.
[2:42:28] 871A
[2:42:30] count two
[2:42:32] he knowingly
[2:42:33] and willfully
[2:42:34] transmitted
[2:42:35] an interstate
[2:42:37] and foreign commerce
[2:42:38] a communication
[2:42:39] that contained
[2:42:41] a threat
[2:42:41] to kill President Trump
[2:42:43] in violation
[2:42:45] of 18 U.S.C.
[2:42:47] 875C
[2:42:49] Mr. Comey
[2:42:51] will be given
[2:42:52] every form
[2:42:53] of due process
[2:42:54] all citizens
[2:42:56] are entitled
[2:42:57] to receive
[2:42:57] to include
[2:42:59] a trial
[2:43:00] by a jury
[2:43:01] of his peers
[2:43:02] in the Eastern District
[2:43:04] of North Carolina
[2:43:05] it doesn't matter
[2:43:06] who you are
[2:43:07] we take all
[2:43:08] threat cases
[2:43:09] seriously
[2:43:10] and prosecute
[2:43:12] anyone who violates
[2:43:14] federal law
[2:43:15] regardless of title
[2:43:17] or status
[2:43:18] thank you
[2:43:20] thank you
[2:43:23] as you heard
[2:43:24] from the Attorney General
[2:43:25] the U.S. Attorney
[2:43:26] former FBI Director
[2:43:27] James Comey
[2:43:28] has now been indicted
[2:43:29] for two felony counts
[2:43:30] while many of you
[2:43:32] may read this indictment
[2:43:33] and view this matter
[2:43:34] as a simple investigation
[2:43:35] it is the farthest
[2:43:36] thing from that
[2:43:37] every single investigation
[2:43:38] this FBI
[2:43:39] and our partners
[2:43:39] at the Department of Justice
[2:43:40] undertake
[2:43:41] especially those
[2:43:42] that involve
[2:43:43] the threats
[2:43:43] to harm
[2:43:45] or hurt
[2:43:45] or even kill individuals
[2:43:46] whether they behold
[2:43:47] public office
[2:43:48] or civilians
[2:43:49] in our country
[2:43:50] are met
[2:43:50] with the same measure
[2:43:51] of investigative prowess
[2:43:52] and tools
[2:43:53] and personnel
[2:43:54] in partnership
[2:43:54] with the Department of Justice
[2:43:55] as anyone else
[2:43:56] as the U.S. Attorney
[2:43:57] indicated
[2:43:58] James Comey
[2:43:59] will be afforded
[2:43:59] every matter
[2:44:00] of due process
[2:44:01] under the United States
[2:44:02] Constitution
[2:44:02] and as the Attorney General
[2:44:04] indicated
[2:44:04] this has been a case
[2:44:05] that's been investigated
[2:44:06] over the past
[2:44:07] 9, 10, 11 months
[2:44:09] these cases take time
[2:44:11] our investigators
[2:44:12] work methodically
[2:44:13] they are career agents
[2:44:14] career prosecutors
[2:44:15] who work these matters
[2:44:17] they call the balls
[2:44:18] and strikes in the field
[2:44:19] as they see fit
[2:44:20] pursuant to the facts
[2:44:21] of the case
[2:44:21] and the law
[2:44:22] they took that information
[2:44:23] and made a presentment
[2:44:25] to a grand jury
[2:44:25] a jury of appears
[2:44:27] in the district
[2:44:27] in which the alleged crime
[2:44:28] took place
[2:44:29] and that grand jury
[2:44:31] spoke
[2:44:31] and that grand jury
[2:44:33] returned a two-count indictment
[2:44:34] against James Comey
[2:44:35] James Comey
[2:44:37] allegedly threatened
[2:44:38] the life of the President
[2:44:39] of the United States
[2:44:40] and as you all now know
[2:44:42] shortly after posting
[2:44:43] that threat
[2:44:45] he deleted
[2:44:45] that threat
[2:44:46] and then issued
[2:44:47] an apology
[2:44:48] all of that information
[2:44:49] was presented
[2:44:50] to the grand jury
[2:44:50] and Mr. Comey
[2:44:52] will have his day
[2:44:53] in court
[2:44:53] and his ability
[2:44:54] to speak to
[2:44:56] a jury of his peers
[2:44:57] thank you
[2:44:57] thank you
[2:45:01] we'll just take
[2:45:02] a couple of questions
[2:45:03] Mr. Attorney General
[2:45:04] the Justice Department
[2:45:07] in this filing
[2:45:08] today also issued
[2:45:10] an arrest warrant
[2:45:11] for Mr. Comey
[2:45:12] is it your belief
[2:45:13] that he is a
[2:45:15] continued public threat
[2:45:16] and is there
[2:45:18] is there a request
[2:45:19] also for detention
[2:45:20] that you anticipate
[2:45:21] will be made
[2:45:22] in this case
[2:45:23] so the Department of Justice
[2:45:25] does not issue
[2:45:26] arrest warrants
[2:45:26] grand juries do
[2:45:27] and so the grand jury
[2:45:28] returned an indictment
[2:45:29] and arrest warrant
[2:45:30] I expect that
[2:45:32] there will be communication
[2:45:33] like hundreds of others
[2:45:40] do every year
[2:45:42] there will be
[2:45:43] some sort of
[2:45:44] arraignment
[2:45:45] set by the judge
[2:45:46] or assigned to the magistrate judge
[2:45:48] and when that happens
[2:45:49] you'll know about it
[2:45:51] this is being handled
[2:45:53] differently from the last
[2:45:54] time he was indicted
[2:45:55] that's my reference
[2:45:56] in this case
[2:45:57] the Department requested
[2:45:59] an arrest warrant
[2:46:00] right
[2:46:00] well I don't think
[2:46:02] that it's public
[2:46:02] or clear
[2:46:03] what the Department
[2:46:04] requested
[2:46:05] the grand jury
[2:46:06] issued an arrest warrant
[2:46:07] go ahead
[2:46:08] yes
[2:46:08] sir
[2:46:09] how will you prove
[2:46:10] intent
[2:46:11] when as the Director
[2:46:13] had acknowledged
[2:46:14] Mr. Comey said
[2:46:15] he did not associate
[2:46:16] 86 with doing harm
[2:46:18] and he took it down
[2:46:19] promptly said
[2:46:20] it was political speech
[2:46:21] not an intent
[2:46:22] to harm the President
[2:46:23] well
[2:46:24] it's not
[2:46:25] it's not
[2:46:26] this case was indicted today
[2:46:28] this conduct occurred
[2:46:29] about a year ago
[2:46:31] May 15th of last year
[2:46:32] there's been a tremendous
[2:46:33] amount of investigation
[2:46:34] and how do you prove intent
[2:46:36] in any case
[2:46:36] you prove intent
[2:46:37] with witnesses
[2:46:38] with documents
[2:46:39] with the defendant himself
[2:46:41] to the extent
[2:46:42] to the extent
[2:46:42] it's appropriate
[2:46:43] and that's how
[2:46:44] we'll improve intent
[2:46:45] in this case
[2:46:46] and so
[2:46:46] I think that
[2:46:47] talking about
[2:46:48] what Mr. Comey
[2:46:51] will or will not do
[2:46:52] if there's a trial
[2:46:52] when there's a trial
[2:46:53] it's not
[2:46:54] it's very premature
[2:46:55] for me to do that today
[2:46:56] General Blanche
[2:46:59] I want to ask you
[2:47:00] a quick question
[2:47:00] about
[2:47:01] there's a number
[2:47:01] of other
[2:47:02] different types
[2:47:03] of conduct
[2:47:03] Comey has been accused
[2:47:04] of over the past
[2:47:05] one of them
[2:47:06] is abuse
[2:47:06] of FISA
[2:47:07] warrants
[2:47:08] I wanted to ask
[2:47:09] if there's anything
[2:47:09] that we could
[2:47:10] talk about today
[2:47:11] in regards to that
[2:47:12] but on a separate matter
[2:47:13] if I may ask
[2:47:14] any more updates
[2:47:15] about the ballistics
[2:47:16] forensic analysis
[2:47:17] with the shooting
[2:47:18] that happened
[2:47:18] over the weekend
[2:47:19] so on the first question
[2:47:20] no
[2:47:21] nothing else to report
[2:47:22] about any investigations
[2:47:24] or anything involving
[2:47:25] Mr. Comey
[2:47:26] except the indictment
[2:47:27] that was returned today
[2:47:28] by the grand jury
[2:47:29] I don't have anything
[2:47:30] further to talk about
[2:47:31] with the ballistics
[2:47:32] that are still being analyzed
[2:47:34] and I said it yesterday
[2:47:36] and every law enforcement
[2:47:38] member who is speaking
[2:47:40] on this issue
[2:47:41] is saying the same thing
[2:47:42] as they should
[2:47:43] which is that
[2:47:43] this is an ongoing
[2:47:44] investigation
[2:47:45] with really, really
[2:47:46] smart experts
[2:47:47] trying to understand
[2:47:48] what happened
[2:47:49] in that shooting
[2:47:49] and where the bullets
[2:47:51] went and ended up
[2:47:51] and where the bullets
[2:47:53] came from
[2:47:53] and once that is
[2:47:54] at a place
[2:47:56] where we can
[2:47:56] definitively say
[2:47:57] to the extent
[2:47:58] we can definitively say
[2:47:59] we will let you know
[2:48:01] Director Comey
[2:48:03] posted this
[2:48:03] almost a year ago
[2:48:04] why bring this case now
[2:48:06] did you always feel
[2:48:07] like this was a strong
[2:48:07] prosecution
[2:48:08] or did something
[2:48:08] change recently
[2:48:09] this investigation
[2:48:12] just didn't come
[2:48:12] now
[2:48:13] it's the result
[2:48:13] of a lot of work
[2:48:16] by law enforcement
[2:48:16] over the past year
[2:48:17] we don't time
[2:48:18] when we bring
[2:48:19] when we bring cases
[2:48:20] around anything
[2:48:21] other than when
[2:48:21] the investigation
[2:48:22] is at a place
[2:48:23] where we should go
[2:48:24] to the grand jury
[2:48:25] and that's exactly
[2:48:26] what we did
[2:48:27] in this case as well
[2:48:28] as a former FBI director
[2:48:31] you may not agree
[2:48:32] with what he did
[2:48:33] should he be able
[2:48:34] to turn himself in
[2:48:35] as a former FBI director
[2:48:36] he's not a flight risk
[2:48:37] I didn't say he can't
[2:48:39] turn himself in
[2:48:40] so he's not under arrest
[2:48:41] right now
[2:48:41] and he may be able
[2:48:42] to work out something
[2:48:42] I don't know
[2:48:42] whether he's under arrest
[2:48:43] right now
[2:48:44] I'm here talking to you
[2:48:44] the grand jury issued
[2:48:45] an arrest warrant
[2:48:46] I think that the way
[2:48:47] that this happens
[2:48:48] is different in every case
[2:48:49] it's fact intensive
[2:48:50] it depends on
[2:48:51] you're right
[2:48:52] who the defendant is
[2:48:53] it depends on
[2:48:53] whether he has counsel
[2:48:54] it depends on
[2:48:55] what the judge wants done
[2:48:56] and so I don't
[2:48:58] I don't know
[2:48:59] when the judge
[2:49:00] will schedule
[2:49:00] an initial arraignment
[2:49:02] if that will be
[2:49:03] scheduled by the magistrate
[2:49:04] or the district court judge
[2:49:04] I am sure
[2:49:05] I don't know
[2:49:06] if you want to speak
[2:49:07] to that
[2:49:07] or if it's just something
[2:49:09] that will come up
[2:49:10] in the next coming days
[2:49:11] you'll know when it happens
[2:49:12] as far as what
[2:49:13] Mr. Comey does
[2:49:14] between now and then
[2:49:15] I'm going to leave that up
[2:49:16] to the line prosecutors
[2:49:17] in the eastern district
[2:49:19] of North Carolina
[2:49:19] the FBI agents
[2:49:21] and the work
[2:49:21] that they're doing
[2:49:22] Can I explain why
[2:49:23] Director Patel
[2:49:24] maybe you said
[2:49:25] that it's a complicated thing
[2:49:26] a lot of people might think
[2:49:27] it's an easy case
[2:49:28] why did it take so long
[2:49:30] I know that you guys
[2:49:30] chose to go with this now
[2:49:32] but to the layman
[2:49:33] just looking at this case
[2:49:34] or layperson looking at the case
[2:49:36] it was an Instagram post
[2:49:37] he apologized
[2:49:38] why did it take so long
[2:49:40] well I'm not going to get
[2:49:41] into the details
[2:49:42] of the investigation itself
[2:49:43] but a lot of these cases
[2:49:44] you could look at
[2:49:45] when the threats were made
[2:49:47] and when charges are brought
[2:49:48] they're not easy cases
[2:49:50] and so we have to
[2:49:51] there's a communication
[2:49:53] that's sent
[2:49:53] allegedly in this case
[2:49:55] and so that means
[2:49:56] that we have to look
[2:49:57] at devices
[2:49:57] Mr. Comey
[2:49:59] is a lawyer
[2:50:00] he has lawyers
[2:50:01] so the extent
[2:50:02] that we're looking at
[2:50:02] materials that
[2:50:03] are potentially privileged
[2:50:05] we have to
[2:50:06] get a wall
[2:50:07] set up a wall
[2:50:08] and let totally independent
[2:50:09] lawyers look at those
[2:50:10] and so
[2:50:11] that doesn't happen
[2:50:12] overnight or quickly
[2:50:13] and
[2:50:13] the satchel limitations
[2:50:15] of this is five years
[2:50:16] we brought it in under one year
[2:50:17] so that's
[2:50:18] that's really where we're at
[2:50:19] Mr. Lee
[2:50:20] it's clear
[2:50:20] that you don't want to talk
[2:50:21] specifics today
[2:50:22] but to the American public
[2:50:25] can you at least give us
[2:50:26] a sense of whether you have
[2:50:27] hard evidence
[2:50:28] or evidence
[2:50:29] that shows that
[2:50:31] Mr. Comey intended
[2:50:32] for President Trump
[2:50:33] to be harmed
[2:50:34] and then secondarily
[2:50:35] for critics who say
[2:50:36] where does free speech
[2:50:38] end
[2:50:40] and an actual threat
[2:50:42] of violence begin
[2:50:44] I don't know what
[2:50:46] critics say that
[2:50:47] especially today
[2:50:48] but it's not a very
[2:50:50] difficult line
[2:50:51] to look at
[2:50:52] and it's not in my mind
[2:50:53] a difficult line
[2:50:54] for one to cross over
[2:50:55] one way or the other
[2:50:56] we cannot
[2:50:57] you are not allowed
[2:50:59] to threaten
[2:50:59] the President of the United States
[2:51:01] of America
[2:51:01] that's not my decision
[2:51:02] that's Congress's decision
[2:51:04] in a statute that they passed
[2:51:06] that we charge
[2:51:07] multiple times a year
[2:51:08] and so whether
[2:51:09] whether there is a defense
[2:51:10] as you just described
[2:51:12] maybe
[2:51:12] maybe there is
[2:51:14] but but the government
[2:51:14] will have evidence
[2:51:15] I am not going to talk
[2:51:16] about the evidence
[2:51:16] that we have
[2:51:17] that's unfair to him
[2:51:18] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[2:51:20] but it's enough to say
[2:51:22] that the grand jury
[2:51:22] returned an indictment
[2:51:24] I'm just taking
[2:51:24] one more question
[2:51:25] thank you sir
[2:51:26] Mary Margaret with the Daily Wire
[2:51:27] should we expect
[2:51:28] more indictments of this sort
[2:51:30] for example
[2:51:30] in 2020 Gretchen Whitmer
[2:51:32] did a TV hit
[2:51:33] with 8645 on her desk
[2:51:35] in the background
[2:51:36] is that the kind of thing
[2:51:37] you would pursue
[2:51:38] and then just really quickly
[2:51:39] should Comey expect
[2:51:41] to face more charges
[2:51:42] for his role in the Russia
[2:51:44] collusion investigations
[2:51:45] I'm not going to comment
[2:51:46] on other investigations
[2:51:47] involving Mr. Comey
[2:51:49] there's he's he had
[2:51:50] he was indicted
[2:51:51] in the East District of Virginia
[2:51:52] that was dismissed
[2:51:53] on procedural grounds
[2:51:54] because of the the judge's
[2:51:56] finding regarding
[2:51:56] the U.S. attorney
[2:51:57] so that case is under appeal
[2:51:59] as far as other
[2:52:00] investigations that are happening
[2:52:02] it would not be appropriate
[2:52:03] or fair for me to comment
[2:52:04] on that time
[2:52:05] as far as other incidents
[2:52:07] of threats against
[2:52:08] the president of the United States
[2:52:09] those will be investigated
[2:52:11] every case is different
[2:52:12] the facts are different
[2:52:13] who makes the threat matters
[2:52:15] what the threat says matters
[2:52:16] you're you're right
[2:52:17] the question about intent matters
[2:52:19] and we have to prove that
[2:52:20] that's something that's our job
[2:52:22] and that's something
[2:52:23] that prosecutors will have to do
[2:52:24] in front of a jury
[2:52:24] at the right time
[2:52:25] but you cannot compare
[2:52:27] it's not fair
[2:52:28] to the American people
[2:52:29] it's not fair to the defendant
[2:52:30] and it's certainly not fair
[2:52:31] to to the prosecutors
[2:52:33] to compare
[2:52:34] well if you did it here
[2:52:35] why didn't you do it there
[2:52:36] every every case is different
[2:52:38] but there's one thing
[2:52:39] that will never be different
[2:52:40] which is that
[2:52:41] you cannot threaten
[2:52:42] to kill the president
[2:52:43] of the United States
[2:52:44] full stop
[2:52:45] all right
[2:52:45] thanks a lot guys
[2:52:46] did President Trump
[2:52:48] return an indictment
[2:52:49] against James Comey
[2:52:51] on two counts
[2:52:52] the first count
[2:52:54] is that on or about
[2:52:55] May 15th of last year
[2:52:57] he knowingly
[2:52:58] and willfully
[2:52:59] making a threat
[2:52:59] to take the life of
[2:53:00] and to inflict bodily harm
[2:53:02] upon the president
[2:53:04] of the United States
[2:53:05] count two
[2:53:06] same day
[2:53:07] May 15th
[2:53:08] 2025
[2:53:08] that the defendant
[2:53:10] James Comey
[2:53:11] knowingly
[2:53:11] and willfully
[2:53:12] transmitting
[2:53:13] in interstate commerce
[2:53:14] a communication
[2:53:15] that contained
[2:53:16] a threat
[2:53:16] to kill
[2:53:17] the president
[2:53:17] of the United States
[2:53:19] both of these counts
[2:53:20] carry a maximum term
[2:53:21] of imprisonment
[2:53:22] of 10 years
[2:53:24] so I think
[2:53:27] it's fair to say
[2:53:28] that threatening
[2:53:28] the life of
[2:53:30] anybody
[2:53:31] is dangerous
[2:53:33] and potentially
[2:53:34] a crime
[2:53:34] threatening the life
[2:53:36] of the president
[2:53:37] of the United States
[2:53:38] will never be tolerated
[2:53:39] by the Department
[2:53:41] of Justice
[2:53:41] over the past year
[2:53:43] this department
[2:53:45] has charged
[2:53:45] dozens of cases
[2:53:47] involving
[2:53:48] threats
[2:53:49] against all sorts
[2:53:51] of individuals
[2:53:51] we take these
[2:53:53] seriously
[2:53:54] every single one
[2:53:55] of them
[2:53:56] for example
[2:53:58] just today
[2:53:59] in the northern district
[2:53:59] of Florida
[2:54:00] there was a guilty plea
[2:54:02] from an individual
[2:54:03] who threatened
[2:54:03] multiple political leaders
[2:54:05] including
[2:54:06] President Trump
[2:54:07] in the eastern district
[2:54:09] of North Carolina
[2:54:09] where this case
[2:54:10] was indicted
[2:54:10] earlier today
[2:54:11] there are multiple
[2:54:13] threats cases
[2:54:14] very similar
[2:54:15] to this one
[2:54:16] including one
[2:54:17] where the defendant
[2:54:18] pled guilty
[2:54:18] recently to threatening
[2:54:20] former President Biden
[2:54:21] another one
[2:54:22] that's scheduled
[2:54:22] to go to trial
[2:54:23] this summer
[2:54:24] another one
[2:54:25] indicted
[2:54:26] an individual
[2:54:27] was divided
[2:54:27] was indicted
[2:54:28] for threatening
[2:54:29] Tom Homan
[2:54:30] I say that
[2:54:32] to say
[2:54:33] that
[2:54:34] while this case
[2:54:36] is unique
[2:54:36] and this indictment
[2:54:37] stands out
[2:54:38] because of the name
[2:54:39] of the defendant
[2:54:39] his alleged conduct
[2:54:41] is the same
[2:54:42] kind of conduct
[2:54:43] that we will never tolerate
[2:54:44] and that we will always
[2:54:46] investigate
[2:54:47] and regularly prosecute
[2:54:49] I want to take a moment
[2:54:51] to thank the
[2:54:52] hardworking members
[2:54:54] of the FBI
[2:54:55] who investigated this case
[2:54:56] over the past
[2:54:57] 11 months or so
[2:54:59] the United States
[2:55:00] Secret Service
[2:55:01] who also assisted
[2:55:02] in this investigation
[2:55:02] and the United States
[2:55:04] Attorney's Office
[2:55:05] for the eastern district
[2:55:07] of North Carolina
[2:55:07] led by
[2:55:08] United States Attorney
[2:55:09] Ellis Boyle
[2:55:10] who's standing
[2:55:11] to my right
[2:55:12] this was an investigation
[2:55:13] that remains ongoing
[2:55:15] that's been ongoing
[2:55:17] for about a year
[2:55:18] and that's all
[2:55:20] we're going to say
[2:55:21] about it today
[2:55:22] I will let
[2:55:23] the U.S. Attorney
[2:55:24] Boyle speak now
[2:55:25] and then
[2:55:26] after that
[2:55:26] Director Patel
[2:55:27] thank you
[2:55:28] thank you Mr. Attorney General
[2:55:34] earlier today
[2:55:36] a grand jury
[2:55:38] in the eastern district
[2:55:39] of North Carolina
[2:55:40] returned a true bill
[2:55:41] indicting Mr. James Comey
[2:55:44] with committing
[2:55:45] two felonies
[2:55:46] count one
[2:55:47] he knowingly
[2:55:49] and willfully
[2:55:49] made a threat
[2:55:50] to kill
[2:55:51] and to inflict
[2:55:52] bodily harm
[2:55:53] upon the President
[2:55:54] of the United States
[2:55:55] in violation
[2:55:56] of 18 U.S.C.
[2:55:59] 871A
[2:56:01] count two
[2:56:03] he knowingly
[2:56:04] and willfully
[2:56:04] transmitted
[2:56:06] an interstate
[2:56:07] and foreign commerce
[2:56:08] a communication
[2:56:09] that contained
[2:56:11] a threat
[2:56:12] to kill
[2:56:13] President Trump
[2:56:14] in violation
[2:56:15] of 18
[2:56:16] U.S.C.
[2:56:18] 875C
[2:56:20] Mr. Comey
[2:56:22] will be given
[2:56:22] every form
[2:56:24] of due process
[2:56:25] all citizens
[2:56:26] are entitled
[2:56:27] to receive
[2:56:28] to include
[2:56:29] a trial
[2:56:30] by a jury
[2:56:31] of his peers
[2:56:32] in the eastern district
[2:56:34] of North Carolina
[2:56:35] it doesn't matter
[2:56:36] who you are
[2:56:37] we take all
[2:56:39] threat cases
[2:56:40] seriously
[2:56:41] and prosecute
[2:56:42] anyone
[2:56:44] who violates
[2:56:44] federal law
[2:56:45] regardless
[2:56:46] of title
[2:56:47] or status
[2:56:48] thank you
[2:56:50] thank you
[2:56:53] as you heard
[2:56:55] from the Attorney General
[2:56:55] the U.S. Attorney
[2:56:56] former FBI Director
[2:56:58] James Comey
[2:56:58] has now been indicted
[2:56:59] for two felony counts
[2:57:01] while many of you
[2:57:02] may read this indictment
[2:57:03] and view this matter
[2:57:04] as a simple investigation
[2:57:05] it is the farthest
[2:57:06] thing from that
[2:57:07] every single investigation
[2:57:08] this FBI
[2:57:09] and our partners
[2:57:10] at the Department
[2:57:10] of Justice
[2:57:11] undertake
[2:57:11] especially those
[2:57:13] that involve
[2:57:13] the threats
[2:57:14] to harm
[2:57:15] or hurt
[2:57:16] or even kill
[2:57:16] individuals
[2:57:17] whether they
[2:57:17] behold public office
[2:57:18] or civilians
[2:57:19] in our country
[2:57:20] are met
[2:57:21] with the same
[2:57:21] measure of
[2:57:22] investigative prowess
[2:57:23] and tools
[2:57:23] and personnel
[2:57:24] in partnership
[2:57:25] with the Department
[2:57:25] of Justice
[2:57:26] as anyone else
[2:57:26] as the U.S. Attorney
[2:57:28] indicated
[2:57:28] James Comey
[2:57:29] will be afforded
[2:57:30] every matter
[2:57:31] of due process
[2:57:31] under the United States
[2:57:32] Constitution
[2:57:33] and as the Attorney
[2:57:34] General indicated
[2:57:35] this has been
[2:57:35] a case that's been
[2:57:36] investigated
[2:57:36] over the past
[2:57:38] 9, 10, 11 months
[2:57:39] these cases
[2:57:40] take time
[2:57:41] our investigators
[2:57:42] work methodically
[2:57:43] they are career agents
[2:57:45] career prosecutors
[2:57:46] who work these matters
[2:57:47] they call the balls
[2:57:48] and strikes
[2:57:49] in the field
[2:57:49] as they see fit
[2:57:50] pursuant to the facts
[2:57:51] of the case
[2:57:51] and the law
[2:57:52] they took that information
[2:57:54] and made a presentment
[2:57:55] to a grand jury
[2:57:56] a jury of appears
[2:57:57] in the district
[2:57:58] in which the alleged crime
[2:57:59] took place
[2:57:59] and that grand jury
[2:58:01] spoke
[2:58:02] and that grand jury
[2:58:03] returned a two-count
[2:58:04] indictment
[2:58:04] against James Comey
[2:58:05] James Comey
[2:58:07] allegedly threatened
[2:58:08] the life of the
[2:58:09] President of the United States
[2:58:10] and as you all now know
[2:58:12] shortly after posting
[2:58:13] that threat
[2:58:15] he deleted
[2:58:16] that threat
[2:58:16] and then issued
[2:58:17] an apology
[2:58:18] all of that information
[2:58:19] was presented
[2:58:20] to the grand jury
[2:58:21] and Mr. Comey
[2:58:23] will have his day
[2:58:23] in court
[2:58:24] and his ability
[2:58:25] to speak to
[2:58:26] a jury of his peers
[2:58:27] thank you
[2:58:28] thank you
[2:58:31] we'll just take
[2:58:32] a couple of questions
[2:58:33] Mr. Attorney General
[2:58:35] the Justice Department
[2:58:38] in this filing
[2:58:39] today
[2:58:39] also issued
[2:58:40] an arrest warrant
[2:58:41] for Mr. Comey
[2:58:42] is it your belief
[2:58:44] that he is a
[2:58:45] continued public threat
[2:58:46] and is there
[2:58:48] a request also
[2:58:50] for detention
[2:58:51] that you anticipate
[2:58:52] will be made
[2:58:52] in this case
[2:58:53] so the Department of Justice
[2:58:55] does not issue
[2:58:56] arrest warrants
[2:58:57] grand juries do
[2:58:57] and so the grand jury
[2:58:59] returned an indictment
[2:59:00] and arrest warrant
[2:59:00] I expect
[2:59:01] that there will be
[2:59:03] communication
[2:59:03] like hundreds of others
[2:59:11] do every year
[2:59:12] there will be
[2:59:13] some sort of
[2:59:14] arraignment set
[2:59:15] by the judge
[2:59:16] or assigned
[2:59:17] to the magistrate judge
[2:59:18] and when that happens
[2:59:19] you'll know about it
[2:59:21] this is being handled
[2:59:23] differently from
[2:59:23] the last time
[2:59:24] he was indicted
[2:59:25] that's my reference
[2:59:26] in this case
[2:59:27] the Department requested
[2:59:29] an arrest warrant
[2:59:31] right
[2:59:31] well I don't think
[2:59:32] that it's public
[2:59:33] or clear
[2:59:33] what the Department
[2:59:34] requested
[2:59:35] the grand jury
[2:59:36] issued an arrest warrant
[2:59:38] go ahead
[2:59:38] yes
[2:59:39] sir
[2:59:40] how will you prove
[2:59:41] intent
[2:59:42] when as the director
[2:59:43] had acknowledged
[2:59:44] Mr. Comey said
[2:59:46] he did not associate
[2:59:47] 86 with doing harm
[2:59:49] and he took it down
[2:59:50] promptly said
[2:59:50] it was political speech
[2:59:52] not an intent
[2:59:53] to harm the president
[2:59:53] well it's not
[2:59:55] it's not
[2:59:56] this case was indicted today
[2:59:58] this conduct occurred
[3:00:00] about a year ago
[3:00:01] May 15th of last year
[3:00:02] there's been a tremendous
[3:00:04] amount of investigation
[3:00:04] and how do you prove intent
[3:00:06] in any case
[3:00:07] you prove intent
[3:00:08] with witnesses
[3:00:08] with documents
[3:00:10] with the defendant himself
[3:00:12] to the extent
[3:00:12] to the extent
[3:00:13] it's appropriate
[3:00:13] and that's how
[3:00:14] we'll improve intent
[3:00:15] in this case
[3:00:16] and so
[3:00:16] I think that talking
[3:00:18] about what Mr. Comey
[3:00:21] will or will not do
[3:00:22] if there's a trial
[3:00:23] when there's a trial
[3:00:24] it's not
[3:00:24] it's very premature
[3:00:25] for me to do that today
[3:00:26] General Blanche
[3:00:30] I want to ask you
[3:00:30] a quick question
[3:00:31] about
[3:00:31] there's a number
[3:00:32] of other
[3:00:32] different types
[3:00:33] of conduct
[3:00:34] Comey has been
[3:00:34] accused of
[3:00:35] over the past
[3:00:35] one of them
[3:00:36] is abuse
[3:00:37] of FISA
[3:00:38] warrants
[3:00:39] I wanted to ask
[3:00:39] if there's anything
[3:00:40] that we could
[3:00:40] talk about today
[3:00:41] in regards to that
[3:00:42] but on a separate matter
[3:00:43] if I may ask
[3:00:44] any more updates
[3:00:45] about the ballistics
[3:00:46] forensic analysis
[3:00:47] with the shooting
[3:00:48] that happened
[3:00:49] over the weekend
[3:00:49] So on the first question
[3:00:51] no
[3:00:51] nothing else to report
[3:00:53] about any investigations
[3:00:54] or anything involving
[3:00:56] Mr. Comey
[3:00:56] except the indictment
[3:00:57] that was returned today
[3:00:58] by the grand jury
[3:00:59] I don't have anything
[3:01:00] further to talk about
[3:01:01] with the ballistics
[3:01:02] that are still
[3:01:04] being analyzed
[3:01:04] and I said it
[3:01:05] yesterday
[3:01:06] and every law
[3:01:08] enforcement member
[3:01:10] who is speaking
[3:01:11] on this issue
[3:01:11] is saying the same
[3:01:12] thing as they should
[3:01:13] which is that
[3:01:14] this is an ongoing
[3:01:15] investigation
[3:01:15] with really, really
[3:01:16] smart experts
[3:01:17] trying to understand
[3:01:18] what happened
[3:01:19] in that shooting
[3:01:20] and where the bullets
[3:01:21] went and ended up
[3:01:22] and where the bullets
[3:01:23] came from
[3:01:23] and once that is
[3:01:25] at a place
[3:01:26] where we can
[3:01:27] definitively say
[3:01:27] to the extent
[3:01:28] we can definitively say
[3:01:29] we will let you know
[3:01:31] Director Comey
[3:01:33] posted this
[3:01:34] almost a year ago
[3:01:35] why bring this case
[3:01:36] now, did you always
[3:01:37] feel like this was
[3:01:37] a strong prosecution
[3:01:38] or did something
[3:01:39] change recently?
[3:01:40] This investigation
[3:01:42] just didn't come now
[3:01:43] it's the result
[3:01:44] of a lot of work
[3:01:46] by law enforcement
[3:01:47] over the past year
[3:01:48] we don't time
[3:01:49] when we bring
[3:01:49] cases around
[3:01:51] anything other than
[3:01:52] when the investigation
[3:01:52] is at a place
[3:01:53] where we should go
[3:01:54] to the grand jury
[3:01:55] and that's exactly
[3:01:56] what we did
[3:01:57] in this case as well
[3:01:59] As a former
[3:02:00] FBI director
[3:02:01] you may not agree
[3:02:02] with what he did
[3:02:03] should he be able
[3:02:04] to turn himself in
[3:02:05] as a former FBI
[3:02:06] director
[3:02:07] he's not a flight risk
[3:02:08] I didn't say
[3:02:09] he can't turn himself in
[3:02:10] so he's not under
[3:02:11] arrest right now
[3:02:12] and he may be able
[3:02:12] to work out something
[3:02:12] I don't know
[3:02:13] whether he's under
[3:02:13] arrest right now
[3:02:14] I'm here talking to you
[3:02:15] the grand jury
[3:02:15] issued an arrest warrant
[3:02:16] I think that the way
[3:02:18] that this happens
[3:02:18] is different in every case
[3:02:20] it's fact intensive
[3:02:21] it depends on
[3:02:22] you're right
[3:02:22] who the defendant is
[3:02:23] it depends on
[3:02:24] whether he has counsel
[3:02:25] it depends on
[3:02:25] what the judge wants done
[3:02:27] and so
[3:02:27] I don't
[3:02:28] I don't know
[3:02:29] when the judge
[3:02:30] will schedule
[3:02:30] an initial arraignment
[3:02:32] if that will be
[3:02:33] scheduled by the magistrate
[3:02:34] or the district court judge
[3:02:35] I am sure
[3:02:35] I don't know
[3:02:36] if you want to speak to that
[3:02:38] or if it's just something
[3:02:39] that will come up
[3:02:40] in the next coming days
[3:02:41] you'll know when it happens
[3:02:42] as far as what
[3:02:43] Mr. Comey does
[3:02:44] between now and then
[3:02:45] I'm going to leave that up
[3:02:47] to the line prosecutors
[3:02:48] in the eastern district
[3:02:49] of North Carolina
[3:02:50] the FBI agents
[3:02:51] and the work that they're doing
[3:02:52] I want to explain why
[3:02:53] Director Patel
[3:02:55] maybe you said
[3:02:55] that it's a complicated thing
[3:02:57] a lot of people might think
[3:02:57] it's an easy case
[3:02:58] why did it take so long
[3:03:00] I know that you guys
[3:03:01] chose to go with this now
[3:03:02] but to the layman
[3:03:03] just looking at this case
[3:03:04] or layperson looking at the case
[3:03:06] it was an Instagram post
[3:03:07] he apologized
[3:03:08] why did it take so long
[3:03:10] well I'm not going to get
[3:03:11] into the details
[3:03:12] of the investigation itself
[3:03:13] but a lot of these cases
[3:03:15] you could look at
[3:03:16] when the threats were made
[3:03:17] and when charges are brought
[3:03:19] they're not easy cases
[3:03:20] and so we have to
[3:03:21] there's a communication
[3:03:23] that's sent
[3:03:24] allegedly in this case
[3:03:25] and so that means
[3:03:26] that we have to look
[3:03:27] at devices
[3:03:28] Mr. Comey is a lawyer
[3:03:30] he has lawyers
[3:03:31] so the extent
[3:03:32] that we're looking at
[3:03:33] materials that
[3:03:34] are potentially privileged
[3:03:36] we have to get a wall
[3:03:37] set up a wall
[3:03:38] and let totally independent
[3:03:40] lawyers look at those
[3:03:41] and so that doesn't happen
[3:03:42] overnight or quickly
[3:03:43] and the satchel
[3:03:45] limitations on this
[3:03:45] is five years
[3:03:46] we brought it in under one year
[3:03:48] so that's really where we're at
[3:03:49] Mr. Comey is clear
[3:03:51] that you don't want
[3:03:51] to talk specifics today
[3:03:53] but to the American public
[3:03:55] can you at least give us
[3:03:57] a sense of whether
[3:03:57] you have hard evidence
[3:03:58] or evidence
[3:03:59] that shows that
[3:04:01] Mr. Comey intended
[3:04:02] for President Trump
[3:04:04] to be harmed
[3:04:04] and then secondarily
[3:04:05] for critics who say
[3:04:07] where does free speech
[3:04:09] end
[3:04:10] and an actual threat
[3:04:12] of violence begin
[3:04:15] I don't know what
[3:04:16] critics say that
[3:04:17] especially today
[3:04:18] but it's not a very
[3:04:20] difficult line
[3:04:21] to look at
[3:04:22] and it's not in my mind
[3:04:24] a difficult line
[3:04:25] for one to cross over
[3:04:26] one way or the other
[3:04:27] we cannot
[3:04:28] you are not allowed
[3:04:29] to threaten
[3:04:30] the President of the United States
[3:04:31] of America
[3:04:31] that's not my decision
[3:04:33] that's Congress' decision
[3:04:34] in a statute that they passed
[3:04:36] that we charge
[3:04:37] multiple times a year
[3:04:38] and so whether
[3:04:39] whether there is a defense
[3:04:41] as you just described
[3:04:42] maybe
[3:04:43] maybe there is
[3:04:44] but the government
[3:04:45] will have evidence
[3:04:45] I am not going to talk
[3:04:46] about the evidence
[3:04:47] that we have
[3:04:47] that's unfair to him
[3:04:49] it's unfair to the prosecutors
[3:04:51] but it's enough to say
[3:04:52] that the grand jury
[3:04:53] returned an indictment
[3:04:54] I'm just going to take
[3:04:55] one more question
[3:04:55] Thank you sir
[3:04:56] Mary Margaret with the Daily Wire
[3:04:58] should we expect
[3:04:59] more indictments
[3:05:00] of this sort
[3:05:00] for example
[3:05:01] in 2020
[3:05:01] Gretchen Whitmer
[3:05:02] did a TV hit
[3:05:03] with 8645
[3:05:04] on her desk
[3:05:06] in the background
[3:05:06] is that the kind of thing
[3:05:08] you would pursue
[3:05:08] and then just really quickly
[3:05:09] should Comey expect
[3:05:11] to face more charges
[3:05:13] for his role
[3:05:13] in the Russia
[3:05:14] collusion investigations
[3:05:15] I'm not going to comment
[3:05:17] on other investigations
[3:05:17] involving Mr. Comey
[3:05:20] he was indicted
[3:05:22] in the East District of Virginia
[3:05:22] that was dismissed
[3:05:23] on procedural grounds
[3:05:24] because of the judges
[3:05:26] finally regarding
[3:05:26] the U.S. Attorney
[3:05:27] so that case is under appeal
[3:05:29] as far as other
[3:05:30] investigations that are happening
[3:05:32] it would not be appropriate
[3:05:33] or fair for me
[3:05:34] to comment on that time
[3:05:35] as far as other instances
[3:05:37] of threats
[3:05:38] against the President
[3:05:38] of the United States
[3:05:39] those will be investigated
[3:05:41] every case is different
[3:05:42] the facts are different
[3:05:43] who makes the threat matters
[3:05:45] what the threat says matters
[3:05:46] you're right
[3:05:48] the question about intent matters
[3:05:49] and we have to prove that
[3:05:51] that's something
[3:05:51] that's our job
[3:05:52] and that's something
[3:05:53] that prosecutors
[3:05:54] will have to do
[3:05:54] in front of a jury
[3:05:55] at the right time
[3:05:56] but you cannot compare
[3:05:57] it's not fair
[3:05:58] to the American people
[3:05:59] it's not fair
[3:06:00] to the defendant
[3:06:00] and it's certainly not fair
[3:06:02] to the prosecutors
[3:06:03] to compare
[3:06:04] well if you did it here
[3:06:06] why didn't you do it there
[3:06:07] every case is different
[3:06:09] but there's one thing
[3:06:10] that will never be different
[3:06:11] which is that
[3:06:11] you cannot threaten
[3:06:13] to kill the President
[3:06:14] of the United States
[3:06:14] full stop
[3:06:15] all right
[3:06:16] thanks a lot guys
[3:06:17] did President Trump
[3:06:18] in Atlanta
[3:06:18] return an indictment
[3:06:20] against James Comey
[3:06:22] on two counts
[3:06:22] the first count
[3:06:24] is that on or about
[3:06:25] May 15th of last year
[3:06:27] he knowingly
[3:06:28] and willfully
[3:06:29] making a threat
[3:06:30] to take the life of
[3:06:31] and to inflict bodily harm
[3:06:33] upon the President
[3:06:34] of the United States
[3:06:35] count two
[3:06:36] same day
[3:06:37] May 15th 2025
[3:06:38] that the defendant
[3:06:40] James Comey
[3:06:41] knowingly and willfully
[3:06:42] transmitting in interstate commerce
[3:06:44] a communication
[3:06:45] that contained a threat
[3:06:47] to kill the President
[3:06:48] of the United States
[3:06:49] both of these counts
[3:06:50] carry a maximum term
[3:06:51] of imprisonment
[3:06:52] of 10 years
[3:06:54] so I think it's fair
[3:06:58] to say that threatening
[3:06:59] the life of anybody
[3:07:01] is dangerous
[3:07:03] and potentially a crime
[3:07:05] threatening the life
[3:07:06] of the President
[3:07:07] of the United States
[3:07:08] will never be tolerated
[3:07:10] by the Department of Justice
[3:07:11] over the past year
[3:07:14] this department
[3:07:15] has charged
[3:07:16] dozens of cases
[3:07:17] involving threats
[3:07:19] against all sorts
[3:07:21] of individuals
[3:07:22] we take these
[3:07:23] seriously
[3:07:24] every single one of them
[3:07:26] for example
[3:07:28] just today
[3:07:29] in the Northern District
[3:07:30] of Florida
[3:07:30] there was a guilty plea
[3:07:32] from an individual
[3:07:33] who threatened
[3:07:34] multiple political leaders
[3:07:35] including
[3:07:36] President Trump
[3:07:37] in the Eastern District
[3:07:39] of North Carolina
[3:07:40] where this case
[3:07:40] was indicted earlier today
[3:07:42] there are multiple threats cases
[3:07:44] very similar to this one
[3:07:46] including one
[3:07:47] where the defendant
[3:07:48] pled guilty recently
[3:07:49] to threatening
[3:07:50] former President Biden
[3:07:51] another one
[3:07:52] that's scheduled
[3:07:53] to go to trial
[3:07:54] this summer
[3:07:54] another one
[3:07:55] indicted
[3:07:56] an individual
[3:07:57] was indicted
[3:07:58] for threatening
[3:07:59] Tom Homan
[3:08:01] I say that to say
[3:08:03] that while this case
[3:08:06] is unique
[3:08:07] and this indictment
[3:08:08] stands out
[3:08:08] because of the name
[3:08:09] of the defendant
[3:08:09] his alleged conduct
[3:08:11] is the same kind
[3:08:12] of conduct
[3:08:13] that we will never tolerate
[3:08:15] and that we will always
[3:08:16] investigate
[3:08:17] and regularly prosecute
[3:08:19] I want to take a moment
[3:08:21] to thank the
[3:08:23] hardworking members
[3:08:24] of the FBI
[3:08:25] who investigated this case
[3:08:26] over the past 11 months
[3:08:29] or so
[3:08:29] the United States Secret Service
[3:08:31] who also assisted
[3:08:32] in this investigation
[3:08:33] and the United States
[3:08:34] Attorney's Office
[3:08:35] for the Eastern District
[3:08:37] of North Carolina
[3:08:38] led by United States
[3:08:39] Attorney Ellis Boyle
[3:08:41] who's standing to my right
[3:08:42] this was an investigation
[3:08:44] that remains ongoing
[3:08:46] that's been ongoing
[3:08:47] for about a year
[3:08:48] and that's all
[3:08:50] we're going to say
[3:08:51] about it today
[3:08:52] I will let the U.S. Attorney
[3:08:54] Boyle speak now
[3:08:56] and then after that
[3:08:57] Director Patel
[3:08:58] thank you
[3:08:58] thank you Mr. Attorney General
[3:09:04] earlier today
[3:09:07] a grand jury
[3:09:08] in the Eastern District
[3:09:09] of North Carolina
[3:09:10] returned a true bill
[3:09:12] inditing Mr. James Comey
[3:09:14] with committing two felonies
[3:09:16] count one
[3:09:18] he knowingly
[3:09:19] and willfully
[3:09:20] made a threat
[3:09:20] to kill
[3:09:21] and to inflict bodily harm
[3:09:23] upon the President
[3:09:24] of the United States
[3:09:25] in violation
[3:09:27] of 18 U.S.C.
[3:09:29] 18
[3:09:30] U.S.C.
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