Sally Yates, Preet Bharara Stress High Bar for Criminal Charges in Russia Probe
Prosecutors fired by Trump say Special Counsel Robert Mueller has challenging task and may not bring charges
www.wsj.com/amp/articles/sally-yates-preet-bharara-stress-high-bar-for-criminal-charges-in-russia-probe-1507158408
[...]But the fact of the matter is, he’s going to determine whether there’s proof beyond a reasonable doubt that felonies were committed, that crimes were committed that can be used for prosecution or impeachment,“ she said of Mr. Mueller. That, she suggested, is but one standard by which to judge the president’s conduct, drawing a distinction between criminal behavior and otherwise objectionable conduct. Mr. Mueller “is not going to answer the question of whether anything bad happened here,” she said.
Mr. Mueller is examining U.S. intelligence agencies’ findings of Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election and whether Trump associates colluded in that effort. Mr. Trump has called the probe a “witch hunt” and has said his campaign didn’t collude with Russia. Moscow has denied meddling in the election.
Mr. Bharara, too, addressed the prospect of Mr. Mueller determining against bringing a case.
“He may not decide that there is an offense to be charged or referred to the House of Representatives for impeachment. And I’ll respect that. And I think people who are on one side of the fence should respect that also,” Mr. Bharara said.
“I hope that we want still in America people to be putting together a team…whose goal only is to find out the truth and apply the law and facts fairly,” he said. “And sometimes that means bringing a case, and I’ve gotten criticized for cases I’ve brought, and sometimes it means don’t bring a case, and I’ve gotten more criticism for that. You want people to be thoughtful about what the law allows and doesn’t, and not be intimidated in either direction.”
Mr. Bharara was fired in March after defying a Justice Department request for the remaining U.S. attorneys appointed by former President Barack Obama to resign. On Wednesday, he and Ms. Yates both recounted the stories of their dismissals, with Ms. Yates revealing a new detail.
Though she learned of her firing through a hand-delivered letter, she said, she discovered that the administration had initially attempted another route.
“Apparently they tried to do it by email, I’m told—I found this out later—they tried to do it by email, but the email kept bouncing back,” she said.
Ms. Yates likened the method to an unceremonious end of a romantic relationship. “That’s sort of like breaking up with somebody by text or something, isn’t it?”