Well, ups, the prosecutors lied in their indictment.
Prosecutors said Friday that they misunderstood text messages used as the basis of a claim that Maria Butina offered to trade sex for access -- an extraordinary admission that threatens to undercut the government's cloak-and-dagger portrayal of the young Russian accused of working to infiltrate American political circles.
The government made the explosive allegation that Butina offered "sex in exchange for a position within a special interest organization" in a filing in July -- a claim that has been hotly disputed by her lawyer."I want the government's walk back to get as much coverage, as prominently, as their initial false allegation," said Robert Driscoll, Butina's attorney.The government acknowledged its error in a filing released just before midnight Friday but said there was still reason to question the depth of Butina's commitment to her boyfriend, Paul Erickson. Erickson is a South Dakota conservative political operative who CNN has identified as "U.S. Person 1" in government filings. He has not been charged with any wrongdoing.
Hopefully, this will make some hardliners aware that an indictment is nothing but a rubber stamp and not proof that what is said is actually also a reality.
https://edition.cnn.com/2018/09/08/politics/maria-butina-court-filing/index.html
Log in to comment