All 4 Roger Stone prosecutors quit over Justice Department sentencing reversal
The Justice Department's decision to reportedly back off its sentencing recommendation for President Trump's longtime adviser Roger Stone apparently wasn't well-received by all of his prosecutors.
Upon learning the Department reversed course and said seven to nine years was "grossly disproportionate" given Stone's offenses — which include lying to Congress, witness tampering, and obstructing a House investigation related to 2016 Russian election interference — prosecutor Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron Zelinsky withdrew from Stone's case. However, it looks like he'll be sticking with the Justice Department and returning to his old job in Maryland.
Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Jed and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Marando later said they'd be doing the same. Meanwhile, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Kravis is resigning from the department altogether.
Wow, another Stone prosecutor, Jonathan Kravis, resigns as an AUSA. No ambiguity here. https://t.co/yeoyJZ25gR pic.twitter.com/zNf7vFnZZV
— Andrew Prokop (@awprokop) February 11, 2020
The decisions by the prosecutors appear to be in protest of what they consider interference from Justice Department higher-ups. The sentencing recommendation was reversed after Trump tweeted angrily about it, although there's no confirmation if the White House was directly driving the change.
Update 6:25 p.m. ET This story has been updated to reflect Jed and Marando's decisions.