What Was Roger Stone Found Guilty Of? A Run Down of the Seven Counts

Leia IdlibyFeb 20th, 2020, 10:45 am
 

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Roger Stone, political consultant and longtime friend of President Donald Trump, was found guilty last November on all seven counts against him.

They are: one count of obstruction of an official proceeding, five counts of false statements, which includes lying to Congress, and one count of witness tampering in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Stone was found guilty of attempting to obstruct the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation of Russian interference by lying to them regarding his contact with WikiLeaks. Stone additionally encouraged other witnesses to lie on his behalf.

Trump denied to Mueller’s team he recalled any contact with Stone about Wikileaks. In a written response, he stated, “I do not recall discussing WikiLeaks with [Stone], nor do I recall being aware of Mr. Stone having discussed WikiLeaks with individuals associated with my campaign.”

Former Trump campaign deputy Rick Gates, however, claimed to have witnessed a phone call between Trump and Stone, in which Wikileaks was discussed as a strategy to take advantage of hacked Democratic emails and ultimately facilitate Trump’s victory in 2016.

Federal prosecutors initially suggested a seven- to nine-year sentence, which Trump has voiced his disapproval of on Twitter, calling the sentence “a horrible and very unfair situation.”

Thursday morning, moments before Stone’s sentencing, Trump also questioned his old adviser’s predicament.

Fox News legal analyst Andrew Napolitano strongly suggested that Trump may pardon Stone on Thursday, the day he is meant to be sentenced on the seven counts. Stone, therefore, will potentially be pardoned by the very man who benefitted from his malfeasance.

Tags: