Kevin Clinesmith
Kevin Clinesmith (born c. 1982) is an American attorney who was previously employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.[1]
Overview[edit]
Clinesmith, a former employee of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was found in the Horowitz Report to have intentionally altered an email from the CIA in August 2016 to insert the phrase "and not a source" to the CIA's statement that Carter Page had provided the CIA with information from 2008 to 2013. This misrepresented the CIA email. Clinesmith subsequently provided that email to an FBI agent who used it as part of the application for a FISA warrant to surveil Page.[2][3] According to the Horowitz Report, if the FISA Court judges had been informed of Page's CIA relationship, his conduct might have seemed less suspicious. In August 2020, Clinesmith pleaded guilty to one felony count of making a false statement.
Background[edit]
Clinesmith is a licensed attorney in the state of Michigan and Washington, D.C.[4]
Clinesmith had earlier worked for the FBI as what was described by some as a front-line lawyer,[5] and by others as a lower-level lawyer,[6] and by others as a low-level position with the National Security and Cyber Law Branch. He also worked for FBI General Counsel James Baker and FBI's Deputy General Counsel Trisha Anderson.
Clinesmith was released from his role on the Mueller Investigation team after it was discovered he had written messages critical of President Donald Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence following Trump's presidential election.[7]
On November 22, 2019, Horowitz referred Clinesmith to prosecutors for potential criminal charges.[5][6][8]
On August 19, 2020, Clinesmith officially pleaded guilty to "willfully and knowingly" falsified a document used to justify surveillance of Carter Page in Trump-Russia investigation.[9][10][7][11][12]
Clinesmith's attorney stated:
“Kevin deeply regrets having altered the email,” Justin Shur, a lawyer for Clinesmith, told Reuters in an email.
“It was never his intent to mislead the court or his colleagues as he believed the information he relayed was accurate. But Kevin understands what he did was wrong and accepts responsibility,” Shur added.[13]
References[edit]
- ↑ Goldman, Adam (November 27, 2019). "Russia Inquiry Review Is Expected to Undercut Trump Claim of F.B.I. Spying". New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
- ↑ Savage, Charlie (August 19, 2020). "Ex-F.B.I. Lawyer Pleads Guilty to Doctoring Email in Russia Inquiry" – via NYTimes.com.
- ↑ Office of the Inspector General (December 2019). "Review of Four FISA Applications and Other Aspects of the FBI's Crossfire Hurricane Investigation" (PDF). Justice.gov. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice. p. 79.
Page had been approved as an operational contact for the other agency from 2008 to 2013.
- ↑ Kevin Clinesmith: Former FBI Lawyer Expected to Plead Guilty in Russia Inquiry
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Musto, Julia (2019-11-28). "Jason Chaffetz: Democrats pre-spinning Inspector General report is 'true to script'". Fox News. Archived from the original on 2020-08-19. Retrieved 2020-08-19. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 Beavers, Olivia (2019-11-22). "DOJ watchdog expected to say FBI erred, but absolve top leaders of anti-Trump bias: report". The Hill (newspaper). Archived from the original on 2020-08-19. Retrieved 2020-08-19. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 Kalmbacher, Colin. Here’s What We Know About ‘FBI Attorney 2’ Kevin Clinesmith, the First Person Charged in Durham Probe, Law & Crime, August 14, 2020.
- ↑ Charlie Savage (2019-11-22). "Russia Inquiry Review Is Said to Criticize F.B.I. but Rebuff Claims of Biased Acts - The New York Times". Nytimes.com. Retrieved 2020-07-05.
- ↑ Naham, Matt (2020-08-19). "Former FBI Lawyer Kevin Clinesmith Officially Admits Altering Email Used to Surveil Carter Page: 'At the Time, I Believed…'". Law & Crime. Archived from the original on 2020-08-19. Retrieved 2020-08-19. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Moreno, J. Edward (2020-08-19). "Ex-FBI lawyer Clinesmith pleads guilty to falsifying document in Trump-Russia probe". The Hill (newspaper). Archived from the original on 2020-08-19. Retrieved 2020-08-19. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ Stabile, Angelica (2020-08-16). "Rep. Nunes on former FBI lawyer Clinesmith's guilty plea in Durham probe: 'This is a good first step'". Fox News. Archived from the original on 2020-08-17. Retrieved 2020-08-17. Unknown parameter
|url-status=ignored (help) - ↑ CNN, Katelyn Polantz and David Shortell. "Former FBI lawyer set to plead guilty to altering email during Russia investigation". CNN.
- ↑ Hosenball, Mark (August 14, 2020). "Former FBI lawyer to plead guilty as part of Russia probe: defendant's lawyer". Reuters. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
External links[edit]
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