Mueller has almost 3 times as much evidence for Manafort's 2nd trial as he did for his first

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September 13, 2018 8:53 PM

In Paul Manafort's first trial, prosecutors showed the jury around 400 documents, emails, and financial records to make their case. In his second, they plan to put forth "well over" 1,000 pieces of evidence, and they expect to take 10 to 12 days to make their case.

The special counsel Robert Mueller's team plans to introduce nearly three times as much evidence in Paul Manafort's upcoming trial in Washington, DC, as it did in Manafort's first trial in Virginia.

In the latter, they showed the jury around 400 documents, emails, and financial records to make their case. Manafort, the former chairman of President Donald Trump's 2016 campaign, was convicted on eight out of 18 counts related to tax fraud, bank fraud, and failure to report foreign bank accounts. The judge declared a mistrial on the other 10 counts after 11 jurors voted to convict him and one held out.

According to a court filing from Manafort's defense team last month, Mueller's team plans to put forth "well over" 1,000 pieces of evidence in the Washington, DC, trial. Prosecutors also said they expect to take 10 to 12 days to make their case in the second trial.

Mueller's office charged Manafort in two separate indictments as part of its investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Manafort pleaded not guilty in both, and he faces a possible decade in prison after being convicted in the Virginia trial.

In the second case, Manafort has been charged with illegal lobbying, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and money laundering.

His lawyers have reportedly been in talks with Mueller's team about a possible plea deal to prevent the second trial from going forward.

But it's unlikely that Mueller's team would agree to a plea deal at this point.

Jury selection is set to start on Monday, and opening arguments are scheduled for September 24. That means prosecutors have already spent all the time and money they were going to in order to prepare for the case.

"If the government agrees to a plea deal without cooperation now, they save nothing in terms of time, money, or resources," former federal prosecutor Patrick Cotter said. "The only way they'd agree to a deal that involves dismissing some charges and asking for a lesser sentence is if it involves a cooperation agreement."

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