The New York State Court of Appeals rejected the Manhattan District Attorney’s offer to bring criminal charges against Paul Manafort after he was pardoned by then President Donald Trump.
Chief Judge Janet DiFiore’s decision came out quietly last Thursday and proved to be a blow to prosecutor Cyrus Vance’s efforts to try Trump’s former campaign president. The case was dismissed by the Manhattan Supreme Court after the judge upheld the double penalty defense argument and subsequent appellate courts upheld the decision.
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Manafort’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, was delighted with the final decision.
“As the court ruled, and the Appeals Division said, the People’s arguments ‘fall short’ of triggering an exception to the double risk that would justify this process,” said Blanche, “We are pleased that the New York Court of Appeals has seen no reason to give permission to the District Attorney to appeal the previous well-founded decision that rejected the indictment and the Appellate Division’s opinion stating the same. ”
The DA’s Manhattan office declined to comment.
Vance indicted Manafort in March 2019, while he was already serving 7 and a half years in federal prison for violating campaign finance laws. The Manafort trial in 2018 was conducted by prosecutors from the Justice Department’s Special Council, Robert Mueller. But state charges would be out of his jurisdiction, so the Manhattan prosecutor accused Manafort of similar fraud crimes. In December 2019, a New York State Supreme Court judge would support Manafort’s defense by granting his motion to close the case based on a double penalty.
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The double penalty clause in the United States Constitution prevents a defendant from being prosecuted for the same crime twice.
“Given the rather unique set of facts relating to the defendant’s previous federal court case, and given New York law on this matter, the defendant’s motion to reject the charge as barred by the double penalty state should be granted,” Judge Maxwell Wiley justified his decision at that time.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo recently passed a law that opened up a state loophole for that presumption, allowing state prosecutors to prosecute similar charges even if the defendants receive federal pardons, but he was not in time to address Manafort.
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In a somewhat similar situation is former White House chief strategist for the Trump administration, Stephen Bannon. The former political agent, who was also pardoned by Trump on federal charges, is now under investigation by Vance’s office, according to a recent Washington report. However, if indicted, Bannon will not have the luck of Manafort, as he has never been tried or convicted by a court.