Trump Ex-Campaign Aide Loses Court Bid To Dismiss Some Criminal Charges

U.S. President Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort

A U.S. judge has rejected a bid by President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort to have some of the criminal charges against him thrown out.

The ruling in Washington on May 25 was the latest setback for Manafort, whose lawsuit challenging the authority of Special Counsel Robert Mueller to bring the case against him was also dismissed last week.

He faces charges of acting as an unregistered foreign agent as well as money-laundering and false-statement charges in connection with information he provided to the Justice Department about his political work for Viktor Yanukovych, the former pro-Russia president of Ukraine.

In a motion, Manafort argued that the false-statement charges amounted to double jeopardy, charging him twice for the same offense of lying to the government. He also argued that the piling up of charges could prejudice a jury against him.

But in a seven-page ruling dismissing Manafort's motion on May 25, U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said any harm to Manafort at this stage in his criminal case could be handled by "proper" jury instructions.

She said he could revisit the double jeopardy matter after his trial, which is scheduled for September.

Manafort spokesman Jason Maloni declined comment on the ruling.

Also on May 25, the U.S. judge in a separate criminal case in Virginia delayed Manafort's trial there.

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III said in an order that he's pushing back the trial on tax evasion and bank fraud charges because of a medical procedure involving a member of Ellis' family.

Manafort's trial is now scheduled to begin July 24. Manafort has pleaded not guilty in both cases.

Based on reporting by AP and Reuters