Manafort Evades NY Charges Due To Double Jeopardy

The Associated Press reports:

A New York court on Thursday upheld a decision dismissing state mortgage fraud charges against Paul Manafort on double jeopardy grounds, affirming a lower court finding that they mirrored the federal charges that landed President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman behind bars.

A four-judge panel in the state’s intermediate appeals court ruled that Manhattan prosecutors failed to show that the state charges they brought against Manafort last year warranted an exception to state double jeopardy protections.

Prosecutors contended that the state charges qualified for an exception because they were meant to prevent “very different kinds” of harm than the federal charges that landed Manafort behind bars and that Manhattan Judge Maxwell Wiley had taken an “exceedingly broad view” in reaching his decision.

As you can see, Manafort has been unable to secure a colorist while behind bars.

After court upholds double-jeopardy law dismissal of Manafort indictment on NY state charges, former Trump campaign chairman’s lawyer says case ‘should never have been brought’ https://t.co/IA1DtbpeII

— Josh Gerstein (@joshgerstein) October 22, 2020