U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who was the judge in the trial of Roger Stone, a longtime friend of President Donald Trump, has ordered an immediate review of Trump’s commutation of Stone’s sentence. The president issued his commutation last Friday.
According to CNN, the reason for Judge Jackson’s call for a review is simple: It remains unclear if Trump only commuted Stone’s sentence and left the stipulations of his probation in place. If Stone remains under the conditions of probation, there would be restrictions on where he could go and what he could do, subject to the conditions of the court and federal probation authorities:
!!! Judge Amy Berman Jackson wants to see Roger Stone’s commutation paperwork, after questions have arisen about whether President Trump’s clemency covers only Stone’s prison time or also his probation. US Probation Office has raised questions about the commutation @kpolantz
— Shimon Prokupecz (@ShimonPro) July 13, 2020
Megan Mineiro of CourthouseNews verified CNN’s reporting on the issue:
Movement on the #RogerStone docket: judge wants to know if Trump commuting his longtime ally’s sentence includes the parole sentence along with the term of incarceration. pic.twitter.com/nlpOph52qf
— Megan Mineiro (@MMineiro_CNS) July 13, 2020
When Trump commuted Stone’s sentence last week, he said he had done so because it was all part of what he called the “Russia Hoax”:
“Roger Stone is a victim of the Russia Hoax that the Left and its allies in the media perpetuated for years in an attempt to undermine the Trump Presidency. There was never any collusion between the Trump Campaign, or the Trump Administration, with Russia. Such collusion was never anything other than a fantasy of partisans unable to accept the result of the 2016 election.”
As it turns out, what may wind being the biggest “hoax” of all is the commutation Trump signed if indeed Stone remains on probation and is subject to obeying the rules and regulations of the U.S. Office of Probation.
Featured Image Via NBC News
