Clinton Campaign Lawyer Michael Sussman Found Not Guilty Of Lying To FBI In Durham Investigation

A federal jury acquitted Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussman on Tuesday of lying to the FBI in a defeat to special counsel John Durham‘s three-year-long investigation.

“I am grateful to the members of the jury for their careful and thoughtful service,” Sussman said in a statement. “Despite being falsely accused, I am relieved that justice ultimately prevailed in this case. As you can imagine, this has been a difficult year for my family and me. But right now, we are grateful for the love and support of so many during this ordeal, and I’m looking forward to getting back to the work that I love.”

Durham had been looking into a statement Sussman made about not working for a client when he tipped a friend at the FBI, general counsel James Baker, to an alleged connection between the Trump Organization and the Kremlin-backed Alfa Bank in 2016. Some of Sussman’s clients included cybersecurity research Rodney Joffe, who was responsible for pulling Alfa Bank data.

There was never a link found to corroborate his statement.

Prosecutors accused Sussman of manipulating the situation to help Clinton win that fall. Sussman said that while his tip originated from a client’s information, he did not make the tip on their behalf and did not try to hide anything from the FBI who was well aware of his connection to the Democratic Party.

The decision came after the jury’s six-hour deliberation.

“While we are disappointed in the outcome, we respect the jury’s decision and thank them for their service,” Durham said in a statement. “I also want to recognize and thank the investigators and the prosecution team for their dedicated efforts in seeking truth and justice in this case.”