Advertisement

Judge bans political strategist Roger Stone from social media

By Danielle Haynes
The federal judge said Roger Stone has posted about his case multiple times on his social media accounts. File Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI
The federal judge said Roger Stone has posted about his case multiple times on his social media accounts. File Photo by Gary I Rothstein/UPI | License Photo

July 16 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Washington, D.C., tightened a gag order Tuesday for political operative Roger Stone, completely banning him from using any social media sites.

District Judge Amy Berman Jackson expanded her previous order, which prevented Stone from discussing his case in public or on social media accounts. After he violated that order multiple times on Instagram, the judge said he must entirely refrain from using social media.

Advertisement

Jackson first issued a gag order in February to keep Stone and his attorneys from speaking about his case directly outside the courthouse, less than a month after a grand jury indicted him in a case related to the investigation of special counsel Robert Mueller. She tightened the order less than a week later after Stone posted a photo to Instagram depicting the judge with a crosshairs target next to her head.

In the post, Stone called special counsel Robert Mueller a "Deep State hitman" and said Berman Jackson is a President Barack Obama appointee who dismissed charges against Hillary Clinton for the 2012 terror attack in Benghazi, Libya.

Advertisement

On Tuesday, Jackson read multiple postings Stone has made in recent weeks about the Mueller investigation.

"Mr. Stone, what am I supposed to do with you," she asked during the hearing. "I find that he is in violation of his conditions of release and media communication order."

Stone pleaded not guilty Jan. 29 to a seven-count indictment on charges of lying to the FBI, obstruction and witness tampering. The Mueller team accused him of lying about his contact with WikiLeaks publisher Julian Assange during the 2016 presidential campaign.

Stone previously said he communicated with Assange in order to obtain information on Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton.

The Mueller team also said Stone attempted to intimidate Randy Credico, another witness interviewed in the probe. Federal agents arrested Stone on Jan. 25 at his Fort Lauderdale, Fla., home.

Latest Headlines