U.S. District Court Judge William Pauley delivered a partial victory to media organizations that have been seeking sensitive government records in Michael Cohen's case. | Spencer Platt/Getty Images Legal DOJ must release redacted Michael Cohen search warrant, judge says The ruling delivered a partial victory to media organizations that have been seeking government records in the Cohen case.

A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Justice Department to release redacted versions of its search warrant and other materials tied to the FBI’s April 2018 raid on Michael Cohen, Donald Trump‘s former personal lawyer.

In a 30-page opinion , U.S. District Court Judge William Pauley delivered a partial victory to several media organizations that have been seeking the sensitive government records in the Cohen case, including its search warrant, warrant applications and supporting affidavits.


Cohen, a longtime Trump attorney and fixer, is scheduled to begin serving a three-year prison sentence on March 6 for a series of tax fraud and lying charges.

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Media companies including CNN, The New York Times and The Associated Press sued to gain access to the government materials connected to the FBI raid of Cohen’s home, hotel room, office, safe deposit box, cellphones and other electronic equipment. The move was a critical early phase of the government’s investigation into potential Trump campaign malfeasance.

Trump complained about the raid at the time, declaring on Twitter: “Attorney-client privilege is dead!”

Pauley, a Bill Clinton appointee based in New York federal court, accepted the news outlets’ First Amendment and common law arguments seeking public access to the materials. But in allowing DOJ to first make redactions, the judge also heeded the government’s warnings that releasing everything could jeopardize its ongoing investigation, including a probe into Cohen’s campaign finance crimes that has implicated Trump himself.

“At this stage, wholesale disclosure of the materials would reveal the scope and direction of the Government’s ongoing investigation,” Pauley wrote. “It would also unveil subjects of the investigation and the potential conduct under scrutiny, the full volume and nature of the evidence gathered thus far, and the sources of information provided to the Government.”

“And if the past is any prologue, unmasking those who are cooperating with the Government’s investigation or who have otherwise provided information to the Government could deter further cooperation with the investigation by ‘subject[ing] those individuals to witness tampering, harassment, or retaliation,’” the judge added.

Pauley’s decision also allows DOJ to black out the names of the special agents who signed the Cohen search warrant and other materials, as well as other identifying information like their experience or techniques and procedures.

And the judge said redactions can be made to limit the release of the names of people around Cohen where the public “might infer criminal complicity, as opposed to references to individuals or entities mentioned only in passing.” That includes Cohen’s transactions connected to his tax medallion business, according to the ruling.

Pauley did order DOJ to release materials tied to the charges against Cohen involving tax evasion and false statements that he made to financial institutions, as well as anything dealing with Cohen’s conduct that didn’t lead to criminal charges.

Thursday’s decision gives DOJ until Feb. 28 to submit the materials to the court under seal with the proposed redactions. After that, Pauley said he will order the government to file the materials on the public docket.

A spokesman for the Southern District of New York and a representative for Cohen declined to comment on the ruling. Attorneys for the media coalition did not immediately respond to a request for comment.