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☆ Roger Stone sentencing proposal change was ‘highly unusual’ but politics didn’t play an improper role, DOJ watchdog says
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Tierney Sneed | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

The investigation was launched after the Justice Department issued a second sentencing memo for Stone called for a prison sentence “far less” than the 7-9 year recommendation his trial team initially put forward. Stone was sentenced to 40 months in prison, but that sentence was ultimately commuted by Trump. However, the inspector general found in Wednesday’s report that even career department lawyers believe “reasonable minds” can disagree on whether the initial sentencing recommendation for Stone was too high. “Thus, we found that Barr had articulated his position about the sentencing recommendation both before and shortly after the first sentencing memorandum was filed, and before the President’s tweets,” the inspector general said. The comments during these deliberations formed a “substantial basis” for Zelinsky’s congressional testimony, the inspector general said.

Persons: Roger Stone, Donald Trump, Stone, Aaron Zelinsky, General Michael Horowitz, ” Zelinsky, Bill Barr, Barr, Trump, Timothy Shea, Shea, ”, Joshua Matz Organizations: CNN, Justice Department, Trump, DOJ, DC, Attorney Locations: DC

☆ Trump and Ivanka's relationship was 'severely damaged' after he found out she was friends with Christopher Steele, the former MI6 agent says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Former MI6 agent Christopher Steele said that his friendship with Ivanka Trump hurt her relationship with her dad. AdvertisementAdvertisementFormer President Donald Trump's relationship with his daughter Ivanka broke down "severely" when the somewhat awkward news emerged that she had an undisclosed friendship with Christopher Steele, the former MI6 agent said on Tuesday. AdvertisementAdvertisement"I informed them that I had in fact had a friendship and professional relationship with Ivanka Trump . AdvertisementAdvertisementBut in his witness statement on Tuesday, Steele said that revealing this had led to trouble with the then-president. Ivanka Trump served as a presidential advisor during the Trump administration and took to the stage in 2020 to introduce him at the RNC.

Persons: Christopher Steele, Ivanka Trump, Steele, —, Donald Trump's, Ivanka, Trump, Sonam Sheth, General Michael Horowitz, Steele's, Ms Trump, Trump's, Mr Steele, Jared Kushner — Organizations: Service, Trump, Associated Press, Business Intelligence, FBI, DOJ, The Times, Guardian, Trump Tower, Times, RNC, DC Locations: London, Trump, Russia, Scotland

☆ FBI Director Christopher Wray, who is a Republican, says it's 'somewhat insane' to suggest he's biased against conservatives
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

FBI Director Christopher Wray expressed exasperation that House Republicans would think he's biased against conservatives. A more sympathetic GOP lawmaker expressed hope that Wray wouldn't leave the party after a contentious hearing. Wray also began to snap back, at one point expressing shock that anyone would suggest he's biased against conservatives. The onslaught led Rep. Ken Buck, a Colorado Republican, to quip that he hoped Wray wouldn't leave the party. The reception illustrates the fury many conservatives hold for the FBI and Wray.

Persons: Christopher Wray, Wray, Wray wouldn't, Joe Biden's, Matt Gaetz, Edgar Hoover, Harriet Hageman, Ken Buck, Buck, Donald Trump, Chris Christie's, General Michael Horowitz, John Durham's, Ron DeSantis, wouldn't, CNN's Jake Tapper Organizations: Republican, Service, Republicans, Florida Republican, Wyoming Republican, Colorado Republican, FBI, Justice Department, New, New Jersey Gov, Florida Gov, CNN, GOP, The Colorado Republican Locations: Wall, Silicon, Florida, Wyoming, Colorado, New Jersey, United States

☆ Nassar, disgraced doctor who abused US gymnasts, is stabbed in prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

July 10 (Reuters) - Larry Nassar, the disgraced doctor of USA Gymnastics who was convicted of sexually abusing young female gymnasts, has been stabbed multiple times by another inmate in prison and was in stable condition on Monday, U.S. media reported. Since the Nassar scandal, USA Gymnastics has overhauled its leadership and filed for bankruptcy, saying at the time it was staggering under the weight of lawsuits filed by hundreds of women who were sexually abused by the former team doctor. USA Gymnastics and the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee reached a $380 million settlement. In September 2021, Biles and Maroney were among the high profile Olympic gymnasts who gave heart-wrenching testimony before a U.S. Senate panel about the sexual abuse they endured for years under Nassar's care. At that hearing, the gymnasts blasted the FBI for its mishandling of the investigation, with Biles accusing the bureau of turning a blind eye to all of Nassar's victims.

Persons: Larry Nassar, Penitentiary Coleman, Benjamin O'Cone, O'Cone, Nassar, Joe Rojas, Rebecca Cook, Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, McKayla Maroney, unflinchingly, General Michael Horowitz, Biles, Maroney, Rami Ayyub, Frank Pingue, Doina Chiacu, Alistair Bell Organizations: USA Gymnastics, Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S, Penitentiary, FBI, CNN, Associated Press, USA, REUTERS, Michigan State University, Olympic, Paralympic, Senate, Biles, Thomson Locations: Florida, Eaton, Charlotte , Michigan, U.S

☆ Massachusetts US attorney accused of multiple ethics violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, May 17 (Reuters) - Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins improperly used her position at the Justice Department to try to influence the outcome of a local district attorney election by leaking negative and non-public information about a political rival, the department's internal watchdog said on Wednesday. That conclusion was among a litany of ethics violations uncovered by Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz in a scathing 161-page investigative report released a day after Rollins announced she would resign her post by Friday. Rollins, the first Black woman to serve as the U.S. attorney in Massachusetts, was appointed by President Joe Biden. She is a prominent figure in the "progressive prosecutor" movement that supports policies designed to eliminate racial disparities in the justice system. Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch and Rami AyyubOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Massachusetts US attorney to resign amid Justice Dept ethics probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins will resign her post by Friday, her lawyer said on Tuesday, after the prosecutor became the subject of a wide-ranging ethics investigation by the Justice Department inspector general's office. Bromwich announced her decision to resign her post not long after Rollins met with officials in Washington at the Justice Department on Tuesday. Rollins was narrowly confirmed by the Senate in December 2021 after Vice President Kamala Harris cast the tie-breaking vote. "I warned Democratic senators that Rachael Rollins wasn't only a pro-criminal ideologue, but also had a history of poor judgment and ethical lapses," Cotton said in a statement on Tuesday. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland had vowed when he assumed his post as the nation's top law enforcement official to protect the Justice Department from partisan influence.

☆ Special counsel John Durham concludes FBI never should have launched full Trump-Russia probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Zachary Cohen Devan Cole Tierney Sneed Evan Perez Hannah Rabinowitz Jeremy Herb Marshall Cohen | Zachary Cohen | Devan Cole | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

“Strzok, at a minimum, had pronounced hostile feelings toward Trump,” Durham wrote, while quoting in a footnote previously known texts between Strzok and Lisa Page, then an FBI attorney. Witness testimony exposed the FBI’s overreliance on the dossier as it sought court approval to wiretap a former Trump campaign adviser in 2016. Mixed results over 3+ yearsBarr tapped Durham in 2019 to review the origins of the Russia probe, and the scope of Durham’s work grew over the years. Former special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, which inherited the initial Russia probe, released a detailed accounting of Russia’s effort to interfere in the 2016 election. Mueller found no evidence of a conspiracy between the Trump campaign and Russia, but investigators documented numerous contacts between Trump associates and Russians.

☆ Takeaways from special counsel John Durham’s report on FBI’s Russia-Trump probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Zachary Cohen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

CNN —Special counsel John Durham released his final report on Monday in which he casts doubt about the FBI’s decision to launch a full investigation into connections between Donald Trump’s campaign and Russia during the 2016 election. The report does not ultimately fulfill the expectations set by former President Trump and his allies who have long claimed that it would prove the FBI’s investigation was nothing more than a political witch hunt. That finding was at the core of Durham’s most scathing criticism of the FBI’s decision to launch a full investigation. “Strzok, at a minimum, had pronounced hostile feelings toward Trump,” Durham wrote, while quoting in a footnote previously known texts between Strzok and Lisa Page, then an FBI attorney. Witness testimony exposed the FBI’s overreliance on the dossier as it sought court approval to wiretap a former Trump campaign adviser in 2016.

☆ Jeffrey Epstein's victims demand answers about the investigation into his death, Gloria Allred wrote in a new letter to the DOJ
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Justice Department hasn't released its investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's death. Gloria Allred, who represents 20 Epstein victims, asked the DOJ inspector general for answers. "Many of Mr. Epstein's victims question how and why the system failed to prevent the death of Jeffrey Epstein," Allred wrote in the letter. Horowitz launched an investigation into the circumstances of Epstein's death soon after he was found dead in his jail cell. "It is unfair that the victims of Jeffrey Epstein continue to be denied the knowledge of the conditions which existed at MCC that led to Mr. Epstein's death," Allred wrote.

☆ Senator calls for probe of mass surveillance tool used by U.S. law enforcement
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Law enforcement agencies have routinely accessed the vast trove of money transfer records without court oversight, Wyden said. The TRAC database was created as part of a 2014 money laundering settlement between the Arizona attorney general's office and Western Union (WU.N). The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, DHS and Arizona attorney general's office have all asked for data from money transfer companies and directed them to send data to TRAC, Wyden said. Western Union, MoneyGram International (MGI.O), Viamericas Corp, and Euronet Worldwide (EEFT.O) are among the companies that have shared customer data with TRAC in bulk, he added. Wyden announced in March that HSI issued custom summonses, a type of subpoena, for millions of money transfer records between Mexican residents and people living in four U.S. states.

The inspector general found that prison officers spoke openly about Bulger’s anticipated arrival around inmates, in violation of policy. Elderly, ailing inmates are often transferred to a prison medical center. Bulger had a heart condition and should have been sent to a prison with special medical facilities, the inspector general found. The FBI is conducting a separate criminal probe into the murder, but it’s not clear whether the bureau is investigating any prison employees. The inspector general's report cites six prison employees as having committed potential misconduct.

As in Danchenko’s trial, Durham failed to convict Sussmann of making false statements to the FBI. And therein lies the reason underlying Durham’s losing trial record. On Monday, during Durham’s closing argument against Danchenko, the special prosecutor made a point of rebuking the FBI’s 2016 investigation. The Hartford Courant reported her concern about “pressure from Barr ... to produce results before the election.”Durham, however, stuck with Barr. And Barr’s energetic attempts after Jan. 6 to rehabilitate his image cannot erase his sad final legacy as a Trump enabler.

☆ Special Counsel John Durham and the Press’s Battle With Truth
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Holman W. Jenkins | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Members of the press are rooting for the failure of the latest John Durham prosecution, because they think it absolves them of their roles in the collusion hoax. Nor are the feelings of special counsel Durham hard to guess. They are likely identical to those of a previous exposer of FBI misfeasance, Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz , who could not have failed to be surprised and a little appalled at the media’s indifference to the truths he and his team labored to reveal at taxpayer expense.

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