NEW YORK— After a slight delay, Michael Cohen will be released from federal prison on Thursday, May 21. The furlough he was granted allows for the rest of his sentence to be served through home confinement, as a result of the coronavirus outbreak and the attempt to slow its spread.
On December 12, 2018, the former personal attorney to President Donald Trump was sentenced to three years in prison. Among the charges against him were campaign finance violations, lying to Congress, and facilitating payments to women who alleged they had affairs with President Trump. Cohen was serving his sentence since May 2019, and was to continue to do so until November 2021.
In March 2020, the Federal Bureau of Prison, along with U.S. Attorney General William Barr, announced that more inmates would be released through home confinement as an effort to protect them, specifically inmates who are at high risk. The Federal Bureau of Prison has released nearly 3,000 inmates to home confinement, and intends to release a 1,000 or more in the months of May and June. Inmates who have served half of their sentence are given priority in releases.
Notable inmates like Paul Manafort, Dean Skelos, and Michael Avenatti, have also been released on such terms.
