The US Justice Department will take the extraordinary step of lowering the amount of prison time it will seek for Roger Stone. The recommendation raised the prospect Stone could receive the harshest sentence of any of the half-dozen Trump aides charged in Mr Mueller's probe. In a tweet early Tuesday, Mr Trump said the case against Stone was a "miscarriage of justice." A Justice Department official said authorities decided to step in and seek a shorter sentence because they had been taken by surprise by the initial recommendation. Sentencing decisions are ultimately up to the judge, who in this case may side with the original Justice Department recommendation.

Source: Irish Independent February 12, 2020 02:26 UTC