The Guardian · US news · Original story
Free speech group calls foul play at prosecutors using Comey novel in case against him
PEN America condemns lawyers using passage from thriller to bolster claim ex-FBI director intended to harm Trump
A leading US free-expression group has hit out at federal prosecutors’ use of a novel written by former FBI director James Comey in their case accusing him of threatening to kill Donald Trump.
“Citing a novel to save an indictment that is constitutionally dubious is a desperate Hail Mary and should be rejected,” said a statement posted on Friday by Mara Gassmann, legal director of PEN America, using a term for a last-second heave in American football.
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Edward Helmore · Sat, Aug 22, 2026, 9:32 AM
US news | The Guardian
PEN America condemns lawyers using passage from thriller to bolster claim ex-FBI director intended to harm Trump
A leading US free-expression group has hit out at federal prosecutors’ use of a novel written by former FBI director James Comey in their case accusing him of threatening to kill Donald Trump.
“Citing a novel to save an indictment that is constitutionally dubious is a desperate Hail Mary and should be rejected,” said a statement posted on Friday by Mara Gassmann, legal director of PEN America, using a term for a last-second heave in American football.
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