New Lawyer Tapped for Butina as Court Readies for Plea
Last edited Fri Dec 7, 2018, 01:17 AM - Edit history (4)
Source: Courthousenews.com
WASHINGTON (CN) - Accused Russian spy Maria Butina is entitled to a public defender, a federal judge ruled Thursday afternoon after a hearing where attorneys appeared to set the stage for a plea deal.
A.J. Kramer, who is identified as "advisory counsel" in the one-line order from U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington, has not responded to request for comment on the unexplained appointment. Robert Driscoll, the private lawyer who has represented 30-year-old Butina since her arrest in July, also has not responded to a request for comment.
Typically, advisory counsel can be assigned by a judge when questions arise over a defendant's legal representation.
Thursday's order came on the heels of a status conference this morning featuring Driscoll, fellow defense attorney Alfred Carry, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erik Kenreson and Thomas Saunders.
Read more: https://www.courthousenews.com/new-lawyer-tapped-for-butina-as-court-readies-for-plea/
Sometimes when a defendant decides to take a plea, his or her original lawyers decide to step down. So maybe that's why the public defender has been appointed . . . especially if her original lawyers were being paid for by Russia.
From USA Today:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/12/06/maria-butina-judge-appoints-another-lawyer-advise-russian-national/2225666002/
[div class"excerpt"] Chutkan scheduled a hearing Dec. 19 to get an update about the case. But on Wednesday, Chutkan scheduled the phone conference Thursday.
The U.S. attorney's office declined comment and defense lawyers didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Chutkan earlier placed a gag order on both the federal prosecutors and the defense team that prevents them from speaking publicly about the case.
Prosecutors and defense lawyers had agreed Nov. 28 that "they remain optimistic about a pretrial resolution of this matter," meaning that a trial might not be necessary.
Meanwhile, the Russian Embassy in Washington issued a statement Thursday calling for Butina's immediate release and calling the case a "blatant outrage."
From CNN:
https://www.cnn.com/2018/12/06/politics/butina-plea-deal-negotiations/index.html
[div class"excerpt"]Butina was charged this summer for illegally acting as a foreign agent for Russia and accused of trying to create a back channel for Russia through activist groups, including the National Rifle Association.
She is currently being held in solitary confinement at a Northern Virginia jail, her attorneys have said.
So far, she has maintained her innocence, saying she was never a foreign agent and simply a foreign student studying in America.
If Butina were to change her plea in the case from not guilty to guilty, she would likely return to Russia.
Prosecutors previously told a court she was in touch with Russian backers and agents as she ingratiated herself with politically powerful Americans.
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It would be great if she got fat, then started singing to make a deal. Then we'd know it's over. (it ain't over 'til.....) 