February 17, 2025

Saluti Law Medi

Rule it with System

Michael Sussmann’s legal time could call Eric Lichtblau as protection witness

Michael Sussmann’s legal time could call Eric Lichtblau as protection witness
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Lawyers for Michael Sussmann, an attorney with ties to the Democratic Bash who is about to go on demo for allegedly lying to the FBI in the heated ultimate days of the 2016 presidential campaign, say they strategy to phone a previous New York Instances reporter as a witness to help exhibit Sussmann is not guilty.

Sussmann allegedly told the major law firm at the FBI in September 2016 that he experienced facts to share about doable cyber inbound links concerning Republican nominee Donald Trump’s enterprise and a Russian financial institution. He faces a solitary count of lying to the FBI mainly because he allegedly claimed he was not bringing them the details on behalf of any shopper, but was carrying out so at the behest of two of his clientele: Hillary Clinton’s campaign crew and a technologies govt named Rodney Joffe.

The trial is scheduled to begin next 7 days in D.C. federal court. Sean M. Berkowitz, a lawyer for Sussmann, stated in court Monday that the protection crew ideas to call previous Moments reporter Eric Lichtblau to testify about his communications with Sussmann and Joffe.

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Berkowitz said in court that after speaking with lawyers for the Instances, his team does not be expecting the information firm to object to Lichtblau testifying about these topics. But he stated the Times did have considerations about the likelihood that Lichtblau would be questioned about unbiased analysis he did on pc topics relevant to Sussmann’s endeavours. Reached for remark by cell phone, Lichtblau referred issues to his law firm, who declined to remark. A spokeswoman for the Periods also declined to comment.

In courtroom, Berkowitz said he envisioned attorneys for the Moments to file some thing with the court docket about the issue at some issue this week.

Berkowitz also reported he programs to connect with Justice Office Inspector Standard Michael Horowitz, who examined the FBI’s dealing with of investigations into Hillary Clinton and a former marketing campaign adviser to Donald Trump, and issued reports sharply critical of the FBI’s work in both these instances.

Berkowitz said he will connect with Horowitz as a witness to talk about how Sussmann provided “information to the inspector normal that also included Mr. Joffe.”

The Sussmann demo will be a closely watched authorized confrontation pitting John Durham, a holdover particular counsel from the Trump administration, against a longtime Democratic attorney. The former president and his supporters have trumpeted the situation from Sussmann as evidence the FBI abused its investigative powers and mistreated the Republican applicant for president, though Democrats have argued that Durham is chasing conspiracy theories about the “Deep Point out.”

John Durham has a stellar name for investigating corruption. Some concern his operate for Barr could tarnish it.

Sussmann has pleaded not responsible. In a motion to dismiss the scenario, he argued that even if he did as Durham alleged, that would not be a federal criminal offense, because the issue of who his customers were was irrelevant to the FBI. As portion of their proof, Sussmann’s lawyers explained they have reviewed additional than 300 FBI email messages that display the bureau recognized Sussmann labored for Democratic campaign entities.

Durham’s group contends that if the bureau experienced recognised Sussmann was doing the job on behalf of two purchasers with political passions, agents might have questioned extra concerns about the source of his information or taken distinct investigative actions.

The information and facts Sussmann introduced to the FBI was laptop knowledge displaying maybe nefarious pc connections in between the Trump Organization, which is the former president’s business enterprise entity, and a Russian economical establishment regarded as Alfa Financial institution. The FBI investigated the make a difference but finally concluded the computer system knowledge did not display anything at all illegal or problematic.

Durham was tapped by then-Attorney Basic William P. Barr in 2019 to evaluate the FBI’s 2016 investigation of Trump’s campaign and no matter whether it conspired with Russia. Barr named him a particular counsel soon right before leaving place of work.