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Michael Cohen Thought He’d Be Released Early Over Coronavirus Fears. That Deal Has Been Rescinded.

   DailyWire.com
Michael Cohen, former personal lawyer to U.S. President Donald Trump, listens to closing statements during a House Oversight Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2019.
Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen had been told he would be leaving prison for home confinement over fears of contracting the coronavirus in prison. His release was supposed to happen on Friday, but, according to his adviser and friend Lanny Davis, the release was delayed without any explanation.

“We are disappointed not only that there was this delay but that no explanation has been offered to him or his family as to the reason for the delay,” Davis said. “We also hope that authorities at the Justice Department and the Bureau of Prisons remain committed to implement the Attorney General’s humane policy during this Covid-19 pandemic crisis, and that no political influences are allowed to interfere that might lead to any further delay.”

Davis, according to Politico, hinted that allegations of political meddling may be lodged if Cohen was not sent home soon. The Daily Beast previously reported that President Donald Trump was “visibly agitated” that Cohen would be released soon. His attorneys with the Trump Organization have also sent the former “fixer” a cease-and-desist letter to stop him from writing a “tell-all” book about his time working for Trump. The attorneys said Cohen would be violating a non-disclosure agreement if he wrote the book.

More from Politico:

However, Cohen also appears to be caught up in a broader policy flip-flop by the federal Bureau of Prisons — and perhaps, Justice Department officials — about which of the roughly 170,000 federal inmates are eligible for home confinement because of the threat posed by Covid-19.

In the middle of last month, as the virus spread rapidly through some prisons, hundreds or more inmates were put into a 14-day prerelease quarantine after senior officials at the Bureau of Prisons indicated that standards for home confinement were being relaxed. A requirement that prisoners have served 50 percent of their sentence was being reduced to 25 percent, officials said.

However, a little over a week later, some of those inmates were pulled out of quarantine and told they were not eligible because that decision had been reversed. After reports in POLITICO and elsewhere about the shift, Attorney General William Barr issued a clarification that appeared to give the prisons the authority to drop the 50 percent requirement again.

It is unclear whether Cohen’s release was due to the clarification from the DOJ. Cohen has been in prison for nearly a year after pleading guilty to numerous charges including violating campaign finance violations during his work for Trump’s 206 campaign and obstructing Congress’ investigation into whether Trump’s campaign colluded with Russia to steal the election (a special counsel investigation found no collusion). Cohen was sentenced in 2018 to three years in prison for his crimes. One source told Politico he would be eligible for early release after he has served 18 months in prison.

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The Daily Wire   >  Read   >  Michael Cohen Thought He’d Be Released Early Over Coronavirus Fears. That Deal Has Been Rescinded.