WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Friday denied a request by President Trump’s friend Roger J. Stone Jr. for a two-month delay before he begins serving his prison term, despite the fact that his motion was unopposed by the Justice Department.
Judge Amy Berman Jackson of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted Mr. Stone an additional two weeks before he must report to a federal prison in Jesup, Ga., but ordered him placed under home confinement in the meantime.
The judge’s order seemed to reflect some impatience about why Mr. Stone, a former campaign adviser to Mr. Trump, had not yet been imprisoned. In a trial Judge Jackson oversaw, a jury convicted him in November on seven felonies, including lying to federal investigators, tampering with a witness and impeding a congressional inquiry. The judge sentenced him in February to 40 months in prison.
The Bureau of Prisons initially ordered Mr. Stone, 67, to report to prison in April, then put off the date until June 30 after the judge, in an order denying him a new trial, said his imprisonment should begin no sooner than April 30.
Then this month, citing the pandemic, Mr. Stone asked Judge Jackson to delay his imprisonment until Sept. 1. He noted his age and health concerns, which were not publicly revealed.
In a nod to the intense criticism over the Justice Department’s handling of the case, prosecutors told Judge Jackson that they did not oppose the delay — but purely because of department guidelines for defendants who are about to begin their prison terms and pose no risk of flight or threat to public safety.
“There is no instance in which this office has opposed a request to extend a self-surrender date during the pandemic,” prosecutors in Washington said this week in a filing to the judge. The department’s stance was drafted “to conform with our policy and practice — and for no other reason,” its lawyers said.
That seemed to conflict with a statement from Mr. Stone’s lawyers. Their filing to the judge said government lawyers had told them this month that the Bureau of Prisons “was no longer extending surrender dates based on Covid-19 and that, therefore, B.O.P. would not be changing Stone’s June 30, 2020, surrender date.”
After further discussions, Mr. Stone’s lawyers said, they were informed that the department would not oppose his request for a delay.
The Justice Department’s handling of Mr. Stone’s case has been deeply fraught. He was one of a string of former Trump aides who were charged as a result of the investigation by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, into Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The Coronavirus Outbreak
Frequently Asked Questions and Advice
Updated June 24, 2020
What’s the best material for a mask?
Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles.
Is it harder to exercise while wearing a mask?
A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico.
I’ve heard about a treatment called dexamethasone. Does it work?
The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth.
What is pandemic paid leave?
The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave.
Does asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19 happen?
So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement.
What’s the risk of catching coronavirus from a surface?
Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks.
How does blood type influence coronavirus?
A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study.
How many people have lost their jobs due to coronavirus in the U.S.?
The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April.
What are the symptoms of coronavirus?
Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days.
How can I protect myself while flying?
If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.)
What should I do if I feel sick?
If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others.
After Attorney General William P. Barr reversed their sentencing recommendation for a stiff prison term, four career prosecutors quit the case and one of them left the department entirely. This week, in a statement to the House Judiciary Committee during an oversight hearing, one of those prosecutors said his superiors cited “heavy pressure from the highest levels of the Department of Justice to cut Stone a break.”
“What I heard — repeatedly — was that Roger Stone was being treated differently from any other defendant because of his relationship to the president,” said the prosecutor, Aaron S.J. Zelinsky. Mr. Zelinsky has now left his assignment in the United States attorney’s office in Washington but remains a department prosecutor in Baltimore.
Mr. Barr has dismissed Mr. Zelinsky’s account as hearsay.
The coronavirus has been spreading through federal prisons. So far, 89 inmates and one staff member have died of the disease, according to Bureau of Prisons statistics.
In an Instagram post this month, Mr. Stone complained that he had been ordered to serve his sentence in a prison that had a “substantial” problem with the virus, while other high-profile prisoners were granted reprieves.
But Judge Jackson wrote that Mr. Stone’s prison was as yet “unaffected.” She said two weeks of home confinement for Mr. Stone would help protect other inmates “who share defendant’s anxiety over the potential introduction and spread of the virus.”
Source: Elections - nytimes.com
