U.S. judge issues gag order in trial of former Trump adviser Roger Stone

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A U.S. judge on Friday limited the
ability of people involved in the criminal trial of Roger Stone, a
former adviser to President Donald Trump, from speaking publicly
about the case in a way that may influence the outcome.

The order by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson prohibits
lawyers involved in the case from speaking with news media, and
prohibits other participants, like Stone himself, from making
statements that may affect the case when they are near the
courthouse.

It does not stop Stone from talking about his case when he is
not near the courthouse. However, Jackson warned Stone that he may
not help his prospects by speaking out.

“One factor that will be considered in the evaluation of any
future request for relief based on pretrial publicity will be the
extent to which the publicity was engendered by the defendant
himself,” Jackson wrote.

Stone faces charges of making false statements to Congress,
obstruction and witness tampering in Special Counsel Robert
Mueller’s probe into Russia’s role in the 2016 U.S. election and
whether Trump’s campaign conspired with Moscow.

The 66-year-old self-proclaimed “dirty trickster” has made
several media appearances since charges were announced last month,
and in a Reuters interview he has downplayed the charges as
“process crimes” that did not involve intentional lies.