Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen will be released from prison as a judge ruled on Thursday that the government acted in a retaliatory manner when he was transferred out of home confinement.
“The purpose of transferring Mr. Cohen from furlough and home confinement to jail is retaliatory and its retaliatory because of his desire to exercise his first amendment rights to publish a book and discuss anything about the book or anything else he wants on social media and others,” Judge Alvin Hellerstein ruled during a telephonic hearing.
Cohen’s attorney said it was a victory for the First Amendment.
The ruling confirms “that the government cannot block Mr. Cohen from publishing a book critical of the president as a condition of his release to home confinement,” Danya Perry, who argued on behalf of Cohen at the hearing, said in a statement. “This principle transcends politics and we are gratified that the rule of law prevails.”
Cohen is scheduled to be released on Friday at 2:00 after he takes a test for the coronavirus.
Story at CNN.