New York indicts and arrests Jared Kushner associate
Earlier this week we reminded everyone that just because the public isn’t aware of the ongoing developments behind the scenes in any given criminal case, it doesn’t mean that case isn’t progressing. In a timely example of how true this is, New York just arrested a guy named Ken Kurson on state level cyberstalking charges – and this is notable in Trump world for a few reasons.
First, Kurson was previously pardoned by Donald Trump on federal charges. But because presidential pardons don’t apply to state charges, the Manhattan District Attorney was able to indict and arrest Kurson today in spite of his pardon. It’s a reminder that no one pardoned by Trump is necessarily safe from criminal prosecution. It’s also a reminder of why Trump didn’t even bother trying to preemptively pardon himself, his family, or some of his associates.
Second, Kurson is a close associate and former employee of Jared Kushner. He also did work for Rudy Giuliani. If Kurson ends up having to cut a plea deal on the cyberstalking charges, his only way out will be to flip on the bigger fish around him. So if Kurson happens to have dirt on Kushner, Giuliani, or anyone else in Trump world, those people should be sleeping rather poorly tonight.
Third, it turns out the criminal investigation into Ken Kurson only began when Donald Trump nominated him for the National Endowment for the Humanities. This triggered a criminal background check, which ultimately led to his arrest today. Trump was presumably attempting to reward Kurson. But as so often tends to be the case, Kurson’s downfall will end up being because he got too close to Trump.
