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Manafort, Gates get OK to leave home, spend Thanksgiving with family

Posted at 4:37 PM, Nov 21, 2017
and last updated 2017-11-21 16:37:24-05

Former Trump campaign officials Paul Manafort and Rick Gates will be able to spend Thanksgiving with their families and leave their homes this week, a federal judge ruled Tuesday.

The two men have been under house arrest since special counsel Robert Mueller charged them on October 30. Both have pleaded not guilty.

Manafort got the exception to be with his family on Thursday. Gates will attend all-day family celebrations Thursday and Friday. Neither will be allowed to drink alcohol, Judge Amy Berman Jackson said in DC District Court on Tuesday. Manafort and Gates did not attend the hearing, but their lawyers did.

Gates’ hearing came amid a spat over whether he has been sincere in disclosing his assets to the government and as he has repeatedly requested to leave his home.

The judge and federal prosecutors have prodded Gates and Manafort to provide proof of their worth and home values if they’d like to change their bail terms. In addition to home arrest, both wear GPS monitors. Manafort has a $10 million unsecured bond, while Gates’ is $5 million unsecured.

Both men’s lawyers have said they’re trying to secure that bail with co-signers and assets.

But even that has had its hiccups. In court Tuesday, the judge reprimanded Gates’ attorney for sending information about Gates’ home value through the clerk’s office instead of in a public court submission.