Dozens of people within the orbit of former President Donald Trump have been investigated, charged, and convicted for a slew of felonies and misdemeanors.
His national security advisor turned conspiracy peddler, Michael Flynn, pled guilty for lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) about his conversations with Russian government figures.
His 2016 campaign official, Roger Stone, was convicted for lying to Congress about his dealings with executives from WikiLeaks.
His 2016 campaign executive chair and avowed white nationalist, Steve Bannon, was arrested for defrauding supporters who helped crowdfund an online campaign to build a wall at the southern border.
And the list goes on.
As common as felons in the Trumposphere were pardons. Trump used his executive pardon powers to benefit his friends at an unprecedented level, pardoning Flynn, Stone, Bannon and others.
Among those others was Ken Kurson, the editor of the New York Observer while Trump's son-in-law and senior advisor—Jared Kushner—served as the paper's publisher.
Kurson was arrested in October of last year for installing spyware to illegally surveil his ex-wife. He was one of over 70 people Trump pardoned during his last hours in office.
But last week, the Manhattan District Attorney's office—a persistent thorn in Trump's side—announced Kurson had been charged again, at the state level, for two felony counts of illegally surveilling his now-ex wife as their marriage was dissolving in 2015, the New York Times reported.
Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance said:
"We will not accept presidential pardons as get-out-of-jail-free cards for the well-connected in New York."
Neither Trump nor Kushner have publicly responded to the development, and Kurson's lawyers didn't comment to the Times.
Trump critics celebrated the development, small as it is, on social media.
Others hoped the charges signified a growing threat to bigger fish in Trump's swamp.
Vance intends to retire by the end of 2021.
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