LEGAL/PAUL MANAFORT/ROBERT MUELLER/TRUMP PEOPLE: “Attorneys for Paul Manafort rested their case on Tuesday [8-14-18] without calling any witnesses, including the former Trump campaign chairman himself, who told the judge he did not want to testify in his own defense against bank and tax fraud charges. The defense attorneys’ decision means that the closely watched case is expected to go to the 12-person jury late Wednesday, after prosecutors and Manafort’s lawyers make their closing arguments and instructions are issued to the jury. Manafort’s trial is the first courtroom test for Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who indicted him as part of an investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. election. A Manafort conviction would undermine efforts by President Donald Trump and some Republican lawmakers to paint Mueller’s inquiry as a political witch hunt, while an acquittal would be a setback for the special counsel. Manafort lawyer Kevin Downing said Manafort’s legal team chose not to mount a defense because U.S. prosecutors had not met the legal bar needed to prove their case.”
–Nathan Layne, Karen Freifeld, Amanda Becker, “Ex-Trump aide Manafort’s defense rests, case headed to jury,” Reuters, August 14, 2018 4:54 am