National

Michael Cohen, President Trump's former attorney, sentenced to 3 years in prison

By Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk
By Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

NEW YORK — A federal judge in New York sentenced President Donald Trump's former long-time attorney Michael Cohen to 36 months imprisonment on Wednesday after he pleaded guilty to several charges earlier this year, according to multiple reports.

Cohen, 52, pleaded guilty last month to making false statements to Congress last year in connection to a Trump real estate deal in Russia.

He also pleaded guilty in August to eight charges including multiple counts of tax evasion and a campaign finance charge stemming from so-called "hush money" payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy playmate Karen McDougal.

Update 12:05 p.m EST: U.S. District Judge William Pauley III sentenced Cohen to 36 months imprisonment and three years of supervised release after he pleaded guilty to eight charges in New York over the summer, Newsday reported.

He was sentenced to two months for lying to Congress, according to Newsday. The sentence will run concurrent with the New York sentence.

"Cohen pled guilt to a veritable smorgasbord of fraudulent conduct," Pauley said before handing down the sentence Wednesday, according to CNN.

Pauley credited Cohen for his cooperation with Mueller's team, however, he added that as an attorney, "Mr. Cohen should have known better," Newsday reported.

Update 11:50 a.m. EST: Cohen said he takes "full responsibility" for the charges he's pleaded guilty to while addressing the court Wednesday.

"This may seem hard to believe but today is one of the most meaningful days of my life," he said, according to CNN. "I have been living in a personal and mental incarceration ever since the day that I accepted the offer to work for a real estate mogul whose business acumen that I deeply admired."

Update 11:45 a.m. EST: Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Nicolas Roos said Wednesday that Cohen's crimes carried a "tremendous societal cost," CNN reported.

"In committing these crimes, Mr. Cohen has eroded faith in the electoral process and compromised the rule of law," Roos said.

Update 11:35 a.m. EST: Jeannie Rhee, an attorney for special counsel Robert Mueller's team, said in brief comments in court Wednesday that Cohen provided investigators with "credible information" related to the investigation into Russian election meddling, Newsday reported.

"Mr. Cohen has sought to tell us the truth, and that is of utmost value to us," Rhee said.

Update 11:15 a.m. EST: Cohen's attorney, Guy Petrillo, said in court Wednesday that Cohen cooperated with special counsel Robert Mueller's office "knowing that he'd face a barrage of attack by the president," according to the Courthouse News Service.

Petrillo said Cohen "offered evidence against the most powerful person in our country," CNN reported.

Update 10:55 a.m. EST: Cohen arrived at the federal courthouse in Manhattan early Wednesday ahead of an 11 a.m. sentencing hearing before U.S. District Judge William Pauley III.

Original report: Federal prosecutors in New York have asked that Cohen receive a "substantial prison term" of around four years, saying in a court filing last week that he'd failed to fully cooperate with investigators and overstated his helpfulness. Cohen's attorneys have argued for leniency, arguing that some of Cohen's crimes were motivated by overenthusiasm for Trump, rather than any nefarious intent.

>> From Cox Media Group's Jamie Dupree: Feds: Manafort lied to prosecutors, Cohen should get jail time

The president has denied that he had affairs with either McDougal or Daniels, but prosecutors said Cohen orchestrated payments to the women at Trump's direction. On Monday, the president wrote in a tweet that the payments were "a simple private transaction," and not a campaign contribution.

Trump said that "even if it was" a campaign contribution, Cohen should be held responsible.

"Lawyer's liability if he made a mistake, not me," Trump wrote. "Cohen (is) just trying to get his sentenced reduced. WITCH HUNT!"

>> From Cox Media Group's Jamie Dupree: Denouncing Cohen, Trump disputes campaign link to payoff of women

A sentence of hard time would leave Cohen with little to show for his decision to plead guilty, though experts told The Associated Press that Wednesday's hearing might not be the last word on his punishment.

Cohen could have his sentence revisited if he strikes a deal with prosecutors in which he provides additional cooperation within a year of his sentence, said Michael J. Stern, a former federal prosecutor in Detroit and Los Angeles.

"Few things spark a defendant's renewed interest in cooperating faster than trading in a pair of custom Italian trousers for an off-the-rack orange jump suit," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

TRENDING NOW:

 

Cox Media Group

Most Read