roger stone trial
Roger Stone pleads not guilty to Mueller's charges
President Trump's longtime adviser Roger Stone has pleaded not guilty to all charges levied against him by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
Stone was arrested Friday on seven counts, including obstruction of an official proceeding, witness tampering, and making false statements. He was quickly released on bail and he and his lawyer pledged to fight the charges. Stone followed up on that promise Tuesday, pleading not guilty through his lawyer to charges that could land him with up to 20 years in prison, per BuzzFeed News.
The indictment, which comes via Mueller's probe into the Trump campaign's possible involvement with Russian election interference, says Stone lied to Congress about his connections with Wikileaks. The site posted stolen emails from the Democratic National Committee, and the indictment suggests Stone knew about the release in advance. It also alleges Stone tried to block a potential witness from cooperating with investigators, resulting in the most serious charge of witness tampering.
Stone has called the charges a "politically motivated attack" and said he will "not testify against the president." Still, Trump's lawyers are reportedly worried Stone will flip. White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has since maintained that Stone's charges have "nothing to do with the president," but would not rule out a presidential pardon for Stone in a Monday press conference.