Charges Against Flynn Formally Dismissed After Trump’s Pardon
Charges against General Michael Flynn have formally been dismissed after a pardon from Trump was granted in late November.
General Flynn served as the Trump Administration’s National Security Advisor up until February 2017. During his time with the administration, Flynn came under scrutiny during Robert Mueller’s investigation, which looked into Russia's interference with the 2016 election.
As a result of the investigation, it was revealed that Flynn had lied to Vice President Mike Pence about conversations he had had with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Flynn went on to plead guilty to lying to the FBI as well when questioned about his involvement with the Russian ambassador.
After just four weeks in his senior role with the administration, Trump tweeted that he had to fire General Flynn. Trump went on to defend his former national security advisor by saying, "He has pled guilty to those lies. It is a shame because his actions during the transition were lawful. There was nothing to hide!"
Flynn Flip-Flops
In June of 2019, Flynn reversed his stance and began cooperating with Mueller and the FBI. Flynn went on to form a new legal team and was adamant about reversing his guilty plea. In a federal court, Flynn asked to withdraw his guilty plea explaining that he had been coerced into giving false testimony.
Flynn's legal team argued that because the former National Security Advisor was cooperating with the FBI in their investigation, he should be met with leniency regarding his sentencing. With the charges he was up against, Flynn was looking at a possible five-year prison sentence. His defense team argued that his cooperation and service to the country should be grounds for probation.
As the Justice Department moved to try and dismiss the case, arguing that Flynn should have never been interviewed by the FBI to begin with, US District Judge Emmet Sullivan refused the Justice Department's request.
It wasn’t until November 24th of this year that another twist unfolded in Flynn's legal saga. The day before Thanksgiving, President Trump announced a full pardon for the general. In a tweet, Trump shared, "It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a Full Pardon. Congratulations to @GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!"
General Flynn’s family responded with gratitude and praised Trump, saying in part, "Thank you for answering our prayers and the prayers of a nation by removing the heavy burden of injustice off the shoulders of our brother Michael, with a full pardon of innocence."
The pardon absolves the former advisor from the charges he pled guilty to as well as any charges that might come forward in the future related to his guilty plea. The pardon also provides Flynn protection from any other charges related to the Mueller investigation as a whole.
Judge Shares Harsh Criticism
Judge Emmet Sullivan of the DC District Court hammered the final nail in the coffin of Flynn’s three-year legal journey by dismissing the criminal case against him as moot. Sullivan explained, "The history of the Constitution, its structure, and the Supreme Court's interpretation of the pardon power makes clear that President Trump's decision to pardon Mr. Flynn is a political decision, not a legal one. Because the law recognizes the President's political power to pardon, the appropriate course is to dismiss this case as moot."
In his dismissal, Sullivan issued a 43-page opinion in which he Described Trump's pardon as “extraordinarily broad.” Judge Sullivan went on to add that just because a pardon was given does not mean that the defendant is innocent of the crimes they are accused of. In his statement, Sullivan explained further, that the Supreme Court recognizes an acceptance of a pardon in itself implies a 'confession' of guilt.
Judge Sullivan's blatant criticism did not stop there. Sullivan went on to explain that the Justice Department's reasoning for wanting the case dismissed was not on par with legal standards.
With his dwindling weeks left in office, there is speculation that the pardon of Michael Flynn will be one of many to come from the President’s final days in office.
