Reported today on The New York Times For the full article visit:
Justice Dept. to Seek Shorter Sentence for Roger Stone, Overruling Its ProsecutorsPresident Trump had complained that the recommendation of seven to nine years in prison for his former adviser and longtime friend was a "miscarriage of justice."WASHINGTON - The Justice Department will back off its sentencing recommendation for Roger J. Stone Jr., President Trump's former campaign adviser and longtime friend, a senior department official said Tuesday, with senior department officials intervening to overrule front-line prosecutors who tried the case.The move is highly unusual and is certain to generate allegations of political interference. It came after federal prosecutors in Washington asked a judge late Monday evening to sentence Mr. Stone to seven to nine years in prison on seven felony convictions for trying to sabotage a congressional investigation that threatened Mr. Trump. Early on Tuesday, Mr. Trump declared the sentencing recommendation "horrible and very unfair.This is a horrible and very unfair situation. The real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them. Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice! - Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 11, 2020
"The real crimes were on the other side, as nothing happens to them," Mr. Trump wrote. "Cannot allow this miscarriage of justice!"Both the sentencing recommendation and the president's tweet took officials at Justice Department headquarters by surprise, according to a department official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the Stone case was ongoing.The recommendation was higher than what the United States attorney's office had told Justice Department officials it would suggest, according to the official, and the department decided soon after the filing to override
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