U.S. judge finds Cohen target of retaliation, releases from prison

"How can I take any other inference but that it was retaliatory?" Cohen has been in solitary confinement in a federal prison in Otisville, New York, about 70 miles (110 km) northwest of New York City.

U.S. President Donald Trump's former lawyer Michael Cohen was ordered released from prison and will return to home confinement on Friday after a federal judge found he was a target of retaliation for planning to publish a book about the president. Cohen was sent home from prison in May because of the coronavirus pandemic.

He was shackled again on July 9 after he questioned an agreement that barred him from publishing his book, engaging with news organizations and posting on social media. Judge Alvin Hellerstein said he had never in his 21 years on the bench seen a provision barring a prisoner from speaking to the media. "How can I take any other inference but that it was retaliatory?" Cohen has been in solitary confinement in a federal prison in Otisville, New York, about 70 miles (110 km) northwest of New York City.