May 29 (UPI) — A federal judge on Friday approved a request to appoint an independent lawyer to review the electronic devices seized during the execution of a search warrant of Rudy Giuliani‘s Manhattan office and home.
Federal prosecutors sought a “special master” to sort through the material on the 18 devices in order to set aside information that could be considered protected by attorney-client privilege. Former New York Mayor Giuliani served as a private lawyer for former President Donald Trump.
He ordered prosecutors and defense attorneys to submit a list of potential candidates by June 4.
Federal agents searched Giuliani’s office and home April 28 as part of the Justice Department’s two-year investigation into whether he engaged in illegal lobbying in Ukraine. He’s yet to face charges on the allegations and has denied any wrongdoing.
Giuliani’s lawyer, Robert Costello, said the search warrant sought correspondence between his client and multiple individuals, including John Solomon, a columnist who had been in communication with him about his efforts to have Ukraine investigate Trump rival Joe Biden.
Trump and Giuliani’s push for the investigation into Joe Biden and his son, Hunter Biden, in the lead-up to the 2020 presidential election was the centerpiece of Trump’s first impeachment trial. He was acquitted, but witnesses testified that the Trump administration threatened to withhold millions in promised military aid if the country didn’t announce a probe into the Bidens.
