U.S. attorneys love this statute, and at least one character in Mueller’s investigation has already been charged with false statements under what is known as “Section 1001″: Michael Flynn. Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to federal investigators last December.
Some Trump supporters have opposed Trump speaking to Mueller’s team for this very reason. Roger Stone, who has advised Trump both formally and informally for years, recently described the prospect of such an interview as a “suicide mission” and “a perjury trap,” telling The Washington Post that “the president would be very poorly advised to give Mueller an interview.”
Additionally, if an interviewee is anticipating a full-blown trial, sitting down for a free-ranging interview with investigators can reveal the defense’s strategies and theories of the case. Trump may not be concerned about this aspect, because he has indicated that he believes he has done nothing wrong. But his attorneys may be concerned about showing their hands, even if their client is not.
Reasonable legal minds will differ, but generally speaking, there are other situations where defense attorneys might refuse an informal interview.
It could lend investigators a hand
One example is where investigators believe the client is a “target,” or carries primary criminal liability, but the client adamantly insists he is innocent. In these cases, the client’s self-serving explanations won’t do much to change the prosecutors’ theory of the case. In the end, the client just helps investigators convict him, and gets nothing in return.
It might open up a whole new world of pain
Another dangerous situation is when investigators focused on one area of inquiry wind up exploring other undiscovered areas unrelated to the original probe. If this rings a bell, that’s because Paul Manafort’s legal team is making a similar claim: that the investigation has exceeded its own authority. Manafort alleges in a lawsuit that Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein’s appointment order improperly “grants Mr. Mueller carte blanche to investigate … charges in connection with anything he stumbles across while investigation, no matter how remote from the specific matter identified as the subject of the Appointment Order.”
If the client has exposure in areas that are not related to the investigation, but uncomfortably close to it, an informal interview would be considered is too risky.
It would help a client shoot himself in the foot
Another reason to avoid an informal interview: an unpredictable client. Sometimes, no matter how well-prepared, an interviewee will volunteer unrelated information, blurt out previously unknown information, or completely contradict his own prior statements. Investigators have every detail of the file memorized; if an interviewee says something suspect, they’ll be all over it.
The president may actually and reasonably believe that he has nothing to hide, and that he has no culpability whatsoever. Assuming that’s true, there are still plenty of risks inherent to the kind of interview Mueller might seek. He can commit new, independent crimes simply by going off-script, contradicting himself, or taking a position that’s inconsistent with the Mueller team’s view of the “truth.” That “truth” may in turn be influenced by what cooperating witnesses have told them — witnesses who volunteer information to help themselves in their own criminal cases.
If Trump were an ordinary client and this an ordinary federal investigation, most criminal defense lawyers would be reluctant to offer up him up for an interview. There are just too many potential downsides.
*News Searching By NBC*