Michael Cohen is scheduled to be sentenced by US District Judge William Pauley in New York City on December 12 after his guilty plea to charges including campaign finance fraud and lying to Congress. Late Friday, Cohen's lawyers filed this 30-page sentencing memorandum which makes a substantial plea for leniency. Here are two good accountings of the filing:
From Lawfare, "There's a Lot Going On in Michael Cohen's Sentencing Memo"
From the New York Times, "Michael Cohen, Ex-Trump Lawyer, Asks U.S. Judge for Leniency"
Here are excerpts from the document's notable preliminary statement (with cites removed):
Beginning before the entry of his plea on August 21, 2018, and continuing thereafter through late November, Michael participated in seven voluntary interview meetings with the Special Counsel’s Office of the Department of Justice (“SCO”). He intends to continue to make himself available to the SCO as and when needed for additional questioning. He also agreed to plead guilty to an additional count, namely, making false statements to Congress, based in part on information that he voluntarily provided to the SCO in meetings governed by a limited-use immunity proffer agreement. The SCO is expected to submit a letter to the Court describing its assessment of Michael’s cooperation, and the Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York (“Office”) is expected to join with the SCO in presenting Michael’s cooperation to the Court as a mitigating sentencing factor under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). Michael’s decision to cooperate and take full responsibility for his own conduct well reflects his personal resolve, notwithstanding past errors, to re-point his internal compass true north toward a productive, ethical and thoroughly law abiding life.
For what it says about Michael’s fortitude and fundamental character, the significance of his cooperation with the SCO falls outside of the ordinary framework in which courts routinely assess cooperation in criminal cases. It states the obvious to observe that this matter is unique. Michael is cooperating in a setting in which the legitimacy of the SCO’s investigation – and the rationale for its very existence – is regularly questioned publicly and stridently by the President of the United States.... The President routinely denounces the SCO investigation as politically biased and reliant on excessively aggressive prosecutorial tactics....
In the context of this raw, full-bore attack by the most powerful person in the United States, Michael, formerly a confidante and adviser to Mr. Trump, resolved to cooperate, and voluntarily took the first steps toward doing so even before he was charged in this District. He took these steps, moreover, despite regular public reports referring to the President’s consideration of pardons and pre-pardons in the SCO’s investigation.... And, he acted knowing that the result would be personal attacks on him by the President, a bevy of advisers and public relations specialists, and political supporters of the President, as well as threats to him. Although it is true that any decision to cooperate in an investigation directly or indirectly touching a sitting President would be weighty and fraught for any former confidante and associate, here, in the circumstances of this case, at this time, in this climate, Michael’s decision to cooperate required and requires singular determination and personal conviction. He could have fought the government and continued to hold to the party line, positioning himself perhaps for a pardon or clemency, but, instead — for himself, his family, and his country — he took personal responsibility for his own wrongdoing and contributed, and is prepared to continue to contribute, to an investigation that he views as thoroughly legitimate and vital....
For the reasons set forth below, we respectfully request that the Court, based on (1) the cooperation Michael has provided, (2) his commitment to continue to cooperate, and (3) all of the remaining sentencing factors required to be considered under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a), impose a sentence of time-served and restitution to the IRS.
As reported in this prior post, Cohen's plea agreement does not allow him to seek a "departure" from the stipulated guideline range — which the plea agreement set at 46 to 63 months' imprisonment — but it does allow that " either party may seek a sentence outside of the Stipulated Guidelines Range based upon the factors to be considered in imposing a sentence pursuant to Title 18, United States Code, Section 3553(a)."
Prior related posts:
- Michael Cohen, Prez Trump's fixer, cuts a plea deal to fix his federal sentence between 46 to 63 months in federal prison
- Prez Trump advocating for a whole new kind of sentencing reform: he says cooperation deals "almost ought to be outlawed. It’s not fair."
- Michael Cohen, former lawyer to Prez trump, pleads guilty to lying to Congress
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