#Indictment against Steve Bannon dismissed over SDNY objection

A Manhattan federal judge Tuesday dismissed an indictment against pardoned former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon despite opposition from prosecutors who wished to keep the charges in place.

Then-President Donald Trump pardoned Bannon on Jan. 19, five months after he was arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Bannon, 67, and three others were accused of using money raised to build a wall along the US-Mexico border through a crowdfunding campaign for personal expenses.

Bannon’s attorney moved to dismiss the indictment against him in March of this year, but prosecutors argued it should remain, even though Bannon would not stand trial.

US District Judge Analisa Torres noted in her seven-page order that prosecutors did not dispute the validity of Trump’s pardon and added, “it is not the practice of this district to remove a defendant from the docket without resolution of the indictment.”

However, Torres added that the pardon did not mean Bannon, the former executive chairman of Breitbart News, was innocent of the charges against him.

“‘Pardon implies guilt,’” she wrote, quoting an 1853 New Jersey Supreme Court decision. “‘If there be no guilt, there is no ground for forgiveness … A party is acquitted on the ground of innocence, he is pardoned through favor. And upon this very ground it is that the pardoning power is never vested in a judge.’ “

“This venerable principle remains true in the twenty-first century,” Torres concluded.

Bannon’s lawyer, Bob Costello, told the Wall Street Journal he did not care for what he called the “extra verbiage” in Torres’ order.

“Mr. Bannon has never been found guilty of anything, and he’s not guilty,” said Costello.

The Southern District of New York did not respond to a request for comment. Bannon’s three former co-defendants — Brian Kolfage, Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea — are currently awaiting trial. They each face up to 40 years in prison if convicted.