Thread by @DanielRAlonso

Forgive me for being a little late to the party at the end of a long day. I worked with and under @AWeissmann_ and appeared many times before Judge Gleeson, and I think your criticism is not completely correct. /1

https://twitter.com/CBHessick/status/1290986622260043778

You're right that Barr did not monkey with the sentencing rules - the guidelines calculation was correct - he just thought the sentence was too harsh. You're also spot on that if DOJ thinks 1001 GL are harsh, then examine this across the boars, and not only for DJT's buddies. /2

But I understand what Andrew was saying bc I was taught this way as well (including by him): he's talking about guidelines calculations and the obligation of AUSAs to make sure the court and probation are not misled as to the relevant facts and relevant conduct. /3

That's standard across administrations and I would hope across different USAOs. You're correct that prosecutors *charge* bargain at times in federal court, and there, as long as the facts support the charge, it's OK that the charges/convictions don't reflect reality. /4

Thus, if #Flynn had lied 100 times in 100 days, it would've been OK (legally, putting aside DOJ policy) to have him plead guilty to just one count of lying to the government. /5

I wasn't 100% sure if your statements about charge bargaining encompass both federal & state court. In state court, it's massively different in my experience. The importance there isn't the totality of the facts, but rather whatever agreement the #prosecutor and the D come to. /6

It's much more the wild west there than in federal court. Andrew's experience is 100% in federal court - he clearly wasn't talking about what we all know is normal in state court. (BTW, I wasn't clear if @rroiphe's comment agreed w this, as we were both in same state office.) /7

Based on your account, it sounds like he got wrong what Barr did, though the Shea sentence memo fudges whether he wants the original range followed. But Weissmann's principal statement about guidelines calculations and facts is correct IMO. /8

I didn't read the Gleeson article you cite, but I know he's rightly been a proponent of greater use of Rule 11(c)(1)(C) to achieve justice. & I have no doubt he's witnessed some manipulation of facts re: guidelines calculations. But that's not the norm, at least not in EDNY. /end