Originally posted by the Voice of America.
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Federal Judges to Hold Emergency Meeting on Trump Admin. Interference in
Politically Sensitive Cases

Kenneth Schwartz

   A national association of federal judges will hold an emergency meeting
   Wednesday after Justice Department officials intervened in the case
   involving a close confident of U.S. President Donald Trump.

   The head of the independent Federal Judges Association, District Judge
   Cynthia Rufe, tells VOA the judges are "concerned about the attacks on
   individual judges" and it will be the main issue to be discussed.

   Rufe declined to give any more details, but said the jurists "could not
   wait" until their spring meeting.

   The Justice Department stunned the political and legal community last
   week when it overruled its own prosecutors and recommended a lighter
   prison sentence for Roger Stone -- a longtime friend and confident of
   Trump who was convicted on lying to Congress, witness tampering, and
   obstruction of justice stemming from the Russian election meddling
   probe.

   Prosecutors in the case had recommended seven to nine years prison time
   for Stone -- a recommendation based on sentencing guidelines for such
   crimes.

   But the Justice Department recommended a lighter sentence after Trump
   complained in a tweet that the seven to nine years would be "horrible"
   and "unfair."

   Three prosecutors in the Stone case withdrew and a fourth quit the
   agency altogether.

   Stone is to be sentenced Thursday and it is up to Judge Amy Berman
   Jackson to decide how long he is to be locked up.

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