Michael Cohen Is Going To Jail

Oh, how the mighty — and smarmy — have fallen! CNN is reporting that Michael Cohen, one-time lawyer and confidant of Donald Trump, is expected to plead guilty to a variety of charges, including multiple counts of campaign finance violations, tax fraud, and bank fraud, as part of a deal with prosecutors.

The deal with prosecutors, the details of which are expected to be revealed at a 4 p.m. court hearing today in front of S.D.N.Y’s Judge William Pauley III, will include jail time and a monetary fine, according to reports. The negotiations on the specific jail time and asset forfeiture was a sticking point, though obviously, the deal will still have to be approved by a judge:

Among the sticking points in the talks, the two sides were negotiating over jail time, according to one source. Cohen is pressing for three years but prosecutors are seeking 50 months.

Cohen has been concerned about asset forfeiture, leaving his family with nothing.

The deal may have far-reaching implications for the legal troubles of the president, as Stormy Daniels’s attorney, Michael Avenatti, was quick to point out:

The developments of today will permit us to have the stay lifted in the civil case & should also permit us to proceed with an expedited deposition of Trump under oath about what he knew, when he knew it, and what he did about it. We will disclose it all to the public.

— Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) August 21, 2018

So far, Donald Trump has not given a statement (or tweeted) about this development. We will update this story as it develops.

UPDATE: According to the New York Times, the plea agreement between Cohen and federal authorities does not require Cohen to cooperate with prosecutors as a term of the deal.

UPDATE #2: As part of his allocution, Cohen notes he acted in “in coordination and at the direction of a candidate for federal office” to keep information harmful to the candidate and campaign from the public.

He also admitted to drinking his scotch on the rocks:

The one moment of levity was just as the judge was evaluating Cohen’s competency. He asked Cohen if he had any alcohol in last day. Cohen said yes. Judge asked what. Cohen said “a glass of Glenlivet 12 on the rocks, your honor.”

— Mike Sacks (@MikeSacksEsq) August 21, 2018

And we have a calculation on the minimum sentence he is facing as a result of these guilty pleas:

All total up to 65 years in prison, minimum 46-63 months, per advisory sentencing guidelines. Judge has discretion, scheduled review of sentencing report for 12/12/18 at 11am. Cohen free to go on $500k bail, confined to NYC, parts of FL, Chicagoland

— Mike Sacks (@MikeSacksEsq) August 21, 2018

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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).