Special counsel Robert Mueller on Thursday gave a federal judge in Virginia an unredacted copy of a Justice Department memo outlining the scope of the Russia investigation, which the judge said he wanted to see before deciding whether to dismiss charges stemming from that investigation against former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort.
According to the filing, Mueller gave Judge T.S. Ellis III a copy of the Aug. 2, 2017, memo on Thursday, which was written by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein.
The unredacted memo is classified and will be viewed by Ellis in the secure spaces in the Alexandria, Va., courthouse.
Nearly two weeks ago in a hearing about Manafort’s motion to dismiss the charges against him in Virginia, Ellis questioned if Mueller had gone outside his scope, and wondered if his team was operating with “unfettered power.” That led to his request to see the memo.
“This investigation that had led to this indictment … has nothing to do with Russia or the campaign,” said Ellis. “We said this is what our investigation is about, but we’re not bound by it, and we were lying. You care about what information Mr. Manafort can give you that could lead to Mr. Trump.”
The 18-count indictment against Manafort in Virginia includes charges bank and tax fraud, but stem from actions of his from before he joined the Trump campaign. He has pleaded not guilty.
Manafort has also pleaded not guilty to charges brought against him by Mueller in Washington, but that case is going forward after U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson denied his motion to dismiss on Tuesday.
“[T]he indictment falls squarely within that portion of the authority granted to the Special Counsel that Manafort finds unobjectionable: the order to investigate ‘any links and/or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign,'” Jackson wrote, citing Mueller’s original appointment order by Rosenstein in May.
According to Mueller’s one page filing, the memo has been filed in camera, which means only Ellis will view it. It is also ex parte, which means Manafort and his defense team will not be able to view it, and it is also under seal, which means it will never go on the public record.
The redacted version of the memo was made public in April in the case brought by Mueller against Manafort in Washington. It expands on the original May 2017 order by Rosenstein that intitially appointed Mueller.
In the August memo, Rosenstein tells Mueller to investigate allegations that Manafort “committed a crime or crimes by colluding with Russian government officials” to interfere in the 2016 presidential election.
Rosenstein also empowered Mueller to investigate Manafort’s payments from Ukrainian politicians.
