Former Roger Stone Prosecutor to Say Sentencing Instructions Was Based on ‘Political Considerations’; DOJ Pushes Back

Former Roger Stone Prosecutor to Say Sentencing Instructions Was Based on ‘Political Considerations’; DOJ Pushes Back
Roger Stone, former adviser to President Donald Trump, departs the E. Barrett Prettyman United States Courthouse in Washington on Nov. 15, 2019. Win McNamee/Getty Images
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A federal prosecutor who withdrew from the Roger Stone case is planning to tell Congress on Wednesday that the Justice Department’s (DOJ) sentencing instructions for Roger Stone were based on “political considerations.” The DOJ, in response, has pushed back, saying that his account was not based on “first-hand knowledge.”

Aaron Zelinsky was one of the four prosecutors who withdrew from the Stone case after department leaders decided to override the prosecutors’ sentencing recommendation of seven to nine years in prison. Zelinsky is scheduled to testify before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, alongside John Elias, the acting chief of staff to the assistant attorney general of the antitrust division, and former Deputy Attorney General Donald Ayer.