An Obama judge blocked Special Counsel John Durham’s evidence from the Clinton campaign in the Sussman trial. The evidence appears to tie Hillary Clinton to the fake Russia conspiracy. Judge Cooper was allegedly keeping politics out of the trial but he just got political. Judge Cooper’s wife represented Peter Strzoke’s lover Lisa Page.
Prosecutors with Durham’s office argued that Sussman, a Perkins Coie lawyer who represented the 2016 Clinton campaign and the DNC, worked in concert with pro-Clinton operatives, tech researchers, and others “toward a common goal” of promoting negative stories about Trump.
Durham has emails and other evidence that link Sussman to just such an effort.
Obama US District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked Durham’s efforts. He claims linking Sussmann to a vast anti-Trump scheme would “essentially amount to a second trial” for conspiracy, a crime that has not been alleged.
“While the special counsel has proffered some evidence of a collective effort to disseminate the purported link between Trump and Alfa Bank to the press and others, the contours of this venture and its participants are not entirely obvious.” Judge Cooper wrote in a 24-page opinion issued over the weekend.
Judge Cooper said that Sussmann is charged with the specific crime of lying to the FBI and introducing a conspiracy claim would require an “extensive presentation of evidence about that conspiracy” that “is likely to confuse the jury and distract from the issues at hand.”
Durham had attempted to introduce emails and other documents between Sussmann, the Clinton campaign, Marc Elias at Perkins Coie, tech executive Rodney Joffe and other tech researchers. He said the documents show a coordinated plot to spread negative stories tying Trump to Alfa Bank, allegations that became part of an investigation that hung over Trump‘s entire term in office.
Cooper will let Durham question witnesses but he won’t allow evidence that Joffe had doubts about the accuracy of the data.
Subscribe to the Daily Newsletter
wpDiscuz
