Thread by @JoshRultNews

EXCLUSIVE THREAD: In a September 2021 interview with former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio David DeVillers, DeVillers informed me former FirstEnergy CEO Chuck Jones previously sought a preemptive pardon from the federal government.

DeVillers, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, said during the final month of Trump’s presidency, he was given a request by the Office of the Pardon Attorney with the Department of Justice.

“There was an inquiry in regards to Chuck Jones. And at the time, Chuck Jones wasn’t charged.” (Continued)

“(Jones) was still under investigation but there was an inquiry as to the status of the investigation, any charges, any possible charges and asked for our opinion on whether a pardon should be granted."

Jones was fired in October 2020 and indicted Monday in Ohio for his alleged role in a $60M bribery scheme surrounding HB6, a $1 billion nuclear plant bailout.

Jones had not been charged at the time when this inquiry popped up and DeVillers said, “I wasn’t happy.”

DeVillers said, “We weren't happy at all. At this point, we had already indicted the bribees. The people that got bribed and we were in the midst of an investigation over the people who did the bribing. And so, that was really important for us to do that.”

DeVillers said the ask for a preemptive pardon is rare and clearly was done outside the standard protocols at the Justice Department for getting pardons. 

“And that never came but that's what we were really worried about because technically, the law isn't clear.”

DeVillers also said he was concerned the federal case against Jones would “disappear” if the pardon was granted by Trump.

“We were really kind of excited because the inquiry came weeks or days before (Joe) Biden would take over. So we were pretty happy right now that we were at a position that we were going to be fine. In fact, we weren't expecting it for Chuck Jones,” said DeVillers.

“We were worried really about some of the other people that were already indicted or charged."

DeVillers said he and his office were mainly worried about a potential pardon for former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder.

DeVillers said he also “had evidence [Householder] flew to [Trump’s] inauguration I believe with Chuck Jones...But there's nothing specific that we had any sort of connection between Donald Trump and Larry Householder."

DeVillers explained, for preemptive pardons, a person can be pardoned for conduct that they did before they were charged or convicted (something President Gerald Ford did for President Richard Nixon).

“Traditionally, you have to be not only charged but convicted of the crime. And within DOJ, you can't even apply for the pardon, at least you or I couldn’t,” said DeVillers.

“We're not celebrities. We couldn't apply for a pardon without being convicted and waiting five years after a conviction or five years after we got out of prison, whichever is earlier. So the idea of a preemptive pardon is extremely rare and that's what the inquiry was about.”

DeVillers confirmed, at the time of the pardon inquiry, Jones was being investigated by his office.

“He was being investigated for bribing or assisting or conspiring to bribe the enterprise, that is the Larry Householder enterprise, and as well as Generation Now."

At the time of the interview, DeVillers said he thought charges for Jones could have first come in the summer of 2020.

“I mean, after everything came (Householder arrest). Clearly there was a bribe, right? And we were looking for the person who bribed [Householder].”

“But, yes, Chuck Jones was somebody we were investigating from jump,” said DeVillers.

DeVillers said he never thought a pardon could come from anyone related to the House Bill 6 investigation when he started the investigation and he said it is unclear where the inquiry originated.

"So the other way that you can ask for a pardon is directly through the White House,” explained DeVillers.

“It’s uncommon, but if somebody has access to the White House, if you're Kim Kardashian or something, and you can do that, you can and it would filter through White House Counsel most likely. And then White House Counsel would contact the DOJ Pardon Attorney to get more info.”

DeVillers said that may have been what happened in this case but could not confirm. He also pointed out how a president has the power to pardon anyone they want.

“It's more difficult when you have a situation where it's presumptive, where there's conduct that you're really pardoning, right? And so they would need that information, that conduct,” said DeVillers.

“And at the time, we were still investigating. We didn't have the full picture. This is January of 2021. So, the investigation was ongoing and we couldn't have given it to him anyway,” said DeVillers.

“And they seemed to be, the pardon attorney's office who I talked to, seemed to be pleased with that answer,” said DeVillers.

DeVillers said his worry for Jones dropped at that point but he was still concerned about a possible pardon for Householder. Those worries, DeVillers said, spread through is office the evening before the inauguration.

“We were calling [each other]. I was calling other U.S. attorneys, that were working on the case, other AUSAs. And, yeah, we were commiserating and kind of hoping nothing would happen,” said DeVillers.

“And I got up early that morning. I read the pardon list, because there are midnight pardons as we know, and no one was on it. So we were we were very pleased."

DeVillers said the pardon attorney’s office was looking for a ‘Findings of Fact’ that could lead to an indictment.

“That's what they were asking for. And the quick answer, after talking with my AUSAs and I believe Vipal (Patel) and Karl Kadon who was the Criminal Chief, we kind of came up with, all right, here's what we have, here's what we don't have at this point..” (continued)

“and we don't have enough probable cause to indict at this point, at least. Let’s say, we didn't have enough that we wanted at that point presented to a grand jury. And that was the answer to the pardon attorney and they seemed to accept that."

DeVillers said that answer was given to the pardon attorney’s office days before the Biden inauguration. He also said it was the only time in his career that someone asked for his opinion on a preemptive pardon.

Knowing what was at stake, the largest bribery scheme ever perpetrated against the people of Ohio according to DeVillers, he said the inquiry set of “a lot of alarms.”

“We were very nervous for those few days. I mean, there was really little we could do about it other than hope it didn't happen. And it didn't,” said DeVillers.

The night before the inauguration and the morning of was described as “a long night.”

“[The investigation] was something that we've worked on for at that point, well over a year and a half. It's something that we really cared about. And, we wanted to be to able to investigate it fully and not like it wither on the vine,” said DeVillers.

“For the people, the state of Ohio, for all the people that suffered because of this, and all the people are duped because of it."

When he looked at that pardon list and did not see Jones, Householder, anybody connected to HB6 or FirstEnergy, DeVillers said he was “very relieved.” He called his AUSAs and said, “Hey, it looks like we're clear."

DeVillers said, if Jones is found to have led any criminal activity at FirstEnergy he would not recommend a pardon for him.

“What's he done since then? Ask me in five years, or five years after the conviction and go through the process, and if he's done some great things for society and he is deserving of it, fantastic. I’d consider it. But if you asked me today, absolutely not."

Looking back on the case, DeVillers summed it by saying, “One of the largest companies in America bought a piece of legislation. That's the bottom line of what's being alleged. And I'll say Chuck Jones hasn't been convicted yet, alright? It's a pending case,” said DeVillers.

“He has got all the rights that we have and these are only allegations. But, yeah, the allegations are, and people have pled guilty to, one of the largest private schemes just ever. I mean, a corporation, a large U.S. corporation, bought a piece of legislation,” DeVillers added.

“That's what's in the indictment. That's what's charged. That's the bottom line."

“You can't do that,” DeVillers added. “You're not supposed to do that and it's our job as prosecutors and investigators to make sure people don't do that."

DeVillers said, “All’s well that ends well, right? So, it didn't happen. We had some nervous days. But, finally, I think that I know the pardon attorney and the DOJ did the right thing. They didn't push it. They didn't try to beat us over the head with it,” said DeVillers.

“They asked the question. They got the answer. From the tone of the attorney I was talking to, they were very happy with the answer,” concluded DeVillers.