FILE-Lieutenant General Michael Flynn (ret.), National Security Advisor Designate, speaks during a conference on the transition of the US Presidency from Barack Obama to Donald Trump at the US Institute Of Peace in Washington D.C. January 10, 2017. ( …
The Department of Justice agreed to give Michael Flynn, the former national security adviser to President Donald Trump, a payout to settle claims that he was wrongfully prosecuted as part of an FBI probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
The Associated Press, speaking to a person on condition of anonymity to disclose nonpublic information, confirmed the settlement total is roughly $1.2 million.
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According to the Washington Post, Flynn pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to FBI agents about phone conversations he had with Sergey Kislyak, a Russian ambassador, sanctions that the Obama administration at the time enforced on Russia for election interference. However, Flynn later attempted to withdraw that plea, claiming it was coerced.
In 2020, Trump pardoned Flynn, ending the court case. Flynn was one of six Trump associates charged as part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into connections between Russia and Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
What was the DOJ and Michael Flynn settlement about?
The backstory:
The legal settlement concludes a 2023 lawsuit in which Michael Flynn was seeking roughly $50 million and claimed that the criminal case against him was a malicious prosecution.
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What they're saying:
In a statement obtained by the Associated Press, Michael Flynn addressed the ordeal sharing that "Nothing can fully compensate for the hell that my family and I have endured over these many years — the relentless attacks, the destruction of reputations, the financial ruin, and the profound personal toll inflicted upon us all. No amount of money or formal resolution can erase the pain caused by a prosecution that should never have been brought."
Who is Michael Flynn?
Dig deeper:
Michael Flynn is a retired Army lieutenant general who campaigned at Donald Trump’s side and served for weeks as his first national security adviser before he was removed from his position. Flynn was still a Trump ally even after agreeing to cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller's team.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by The Washington Post and The Associated Press, who spoke with a person on condition of anonymity about the settlement. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.