UPDATED 2 X: D’Souza Expected to Plead Guilty to Charge

Last edited Tue May 20, 2014, 04:34 PM - Edit history (2)

Source: New York Times

By BENJAMIN WEISERMAY 20, 2014

A federal court hearing has been scheduled for Tuesday morning in which the conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D’Souza is expected to plead guilty to a charge stemming from campaign finance violations, according to a notice sent out by the government.

Mr. D’Souza was charged in January with using straw donors to contribute to a New York Republican Senate campaign, and his trial was to begin this week in United States District Court.

But the United States attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York sent out an advisory late Monday night that said a hearing had been scheduled on Tuesday, using language that typically indicates that a plea is expected to occur.

Decisions to plead guilty are subject to change at the last minute, and a defendant like Mr. D’Souza could decide instead to go to trial. The judge, Richard M. Berman, was to oversee jury selection on Tuesday morning, and opening arguments were expected to take place that day.

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Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/20/nyregion/dsouza-expected-to-plead-guilty-to-charge.html?_r=0

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Update 1:

D'Souza pleads guilty to U.S. campaign finance law violation

NEW YORK Tue May 20, 2014 9:51am EDT

(Reuters) - The conservative author and filmmaker Dinesh D'Souza pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a campaign finance law violation, averting a trial that had been expected to begin the same day in Manhattan federal court.

D'Souza pleaded guilty to one criminal count of making illegal contributions in the names of others. A second count concerning the making of false statements is expected to be dismissed once the defendant is sentenced.

The plea came four months after Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara charged D'Souza with using straw donors to give funds in 2012 to Wendy Long, a Republican Senate candidate in New York who ultimately lost to Democratic incumbent Kirsten Gillibrand.

D'Souza entered his plea before U.S. District Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan.

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http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/20/us-usa-politics-dsouza-idUSBREA4J0H520140520

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Update 2:

ERIC LACH – MAY 20, 2014, 3:53 PM EDT
Dinesh D'Souza told a federal judge on Tuesday that he "deeply" regretted violating a federal campaign finance law, and that he knew that what he did had been wrong, during a hearing in which the conservative author pleaded guilty to making more than $10,000 of contributions in the names of others.

“I knew that making a campaign contribution in the name of another was wrong and something the law forbids,” D’Souza told U.S. District Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan, according to The New York Times. “I deeply regret my conduct.”

“Are you pleading guilty to this crime because you are in fact guilty of it?” Berman asked in response.

“Yes, your honor,” D’Souza said.

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The Times reported Tuesday that D'Souza is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 23, and that Berman indicated he could face up to two years in prison. D'Souza's plea agreement, however, states that sentencing guidelines call for 10 to 16 months.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/dinesh-dsouza-court-statements