Roger Stone moves to drop appeal of felony convictions

Washington — Longtime GOP operative Roger Stone, a close ally of President Trump, has moved to drop his appeal of his seven felony convictions that stemmed from a case brought by special counsel Robert Mueller.

Stone's attorneys filed a motion to dismiss the appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Monday night. In a statement on his personal website, Stone said he "reluctantly decided" to forego his challenge to the convictions "on the strong advice of my attorneys and after giving the decision considerable thought."

"It is time for me to move on with my life with my family, friends and supporters," Stone said. "I regret not going forward with the appeal to fully expose all that happened, with the hope that by doing so, I could help prevent it from happening to anyone else ever again; but I had to decide based on what is best for me and my family."

Stone said his attorneys warned him the odds of winning before the D.C. Circuit were "slim."

A jury convicted Stone on charges of obstruction, making false statements and witness tampering in November, and he was sentenced to 40 months in prison in February. But in July, Mr. Trump commuted Stone's prison sentence and wiped away a $20,000 fine he was ordered to pay, arguing the GOP operative was the victim of the "Russia hoax" and was unfairly ensnared in Mueller's "witch hunts."

The filing from Stone's attorneys comes hours after Mr. Trump told reporters he would be pardoning someone "very, very important." Mr. Trump ruled out Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who leaked classified documents, and Michael Flynn, his former national security adviser. 

On Tuesday morning, the president announced he was posthumously pardoning women's suffrage pioneer Susan B. Anthony, who was convicted for casting a vote in New York in 1872.

Mr. Trump has long defended Flynn, whose case is currently before the D.C. Circuit after the Justice Department moved to dismiss its criminal case against him in May. The president also told reporters Saturday he is "going to take a very good look" at a pardon for Snowden, who he has called a "traitor" and "a spy who should be executed."