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Trump Confidant Stone to be Sentenced Thursday

Kenneth Schwartz

   Roger Stone, a friend and confidant ofPresident Donald Trump,is set to
   appear before a federal judge Thursday to be sentenced for lying to
   Congress, witness tampering and obstruction of justice stemming from
   the 2016 Russian election meddling probe.

   Prosecutors had recommended seven to nine years in prison. But Attorney
   General William Barr and other top Justice Department officials
   overruled their own prosecutors and recommended a lighter prison
   sentence.

   Three of the prosecutors withdrew from the case in protest and a fourth
   quit the Justice Department outright.

   But it is up toU.S. DistrictJudge Amy Berman Jackson to decide how long
   Stone willbe locked up.

   Berman has refused to delay Stone's sentencing but has said she could
   put off an order for Stone to begin his sentencewhileStone's
   lawyerspursuearequest fora new trial.

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