Jed Shugerman was quoted in an NBC article about local prosecutions involving Russia’s possible interference in the 2016 United States elections.
FBI Director Robert Mueller testifies before the Senate Intelligence Committee during the annual open hearing on worldwide threats on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, March 12, 2013. Susan Walsh / AP file
According to U.S. intelligence and public accounts, Russian efforts included criminal hacking into Democratic National Committee emails, a conspiracy to distribute that stolen material, and separate computer intrusions into state election systems. That activity could form the basis of felony cases in several states, and conspiracy charges if any Americans were found to be involved.
Local prosecutors have not disclosed investigations of such conduct. Typically, state and local prosecutors defer to federal investigators, especially in national security cases. But pardons could change that.
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Jed Shugerman, a historian and Fordham law professor, says the very nature of the Russian plot strengthens the case for local prosecution.
“Given how widespread these crimes were,” Shugerman says, “there are lots of different avenues for jurisdiction, and New York is the easiest one.”
