Lawrence native Michael Cohen is home

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Lawrence native Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer, was released from upstate Otisville, a medium security federal prison, on May 21, because of the coronavirus, and is now home. 

"I am so glad to be home and back with my family," Cohen tweeted on May 21. "There is so much I want to say and intend to say. But now is not the right time. Soon. Thank you to all my friends and supporters."

Cohen, 53,  will serve the remainder of his three-year sentence confined to home. He had a release request denied in March and then another release was rescinded by the Federal Bureau of Prisons on May 9 because Cohen had yet to serve 50 percent of his sentence that runs until Nov. 22, 2021.

He previously served the required 14-day quarantine  The bureau's basic two-step policy has inmates being released to community custody quarantined for 14 days before the release. After that period: If an inmate has no symptoms and a temperature less than 100.4° , the inmate will be transferred. Ifan inmate has Covid-19 symptoms, or temperature greater than 100.4°  they will not be transferred and will instead be immediately placed in isolation.

He, was found guilty of breaking campaign finance laws, tax evasion and lying Congress, among other charges in 2018. He was also ordered to pay $1.39 million in restitution, forfeit $500,000 and pay a $50,000 fine. The guilty pleas to the federal felony charges resulted in his disbarment as a lawyer in New York state. 

It was also reported by several media outlets earlier this month, that the Bureau of Prisons denial came one day after Trump Organization attorney Charles Harder warned Cohen in a letter to not publish his planned  “tell-all” book.

Cohen testified multiple times in front of Congressional committees on Capitol Hill last year, including the public hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, where he famously called his former boss a racist and a cheat, and admitted,” I am a fool.”