Kevin Clinesmith, the former FBI lawyer who altered an email during the Russia investigation
that was used to justify the surveillance of former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page, was sentenced to one-year probation on Friday.
Clinesmith, who worked for the FBI for four years, pleaded guilty last summer to falsifying the communication
during the early stages of the FBI's investigation into Russia's interference in the 2016 election and possible ties to the Trump campaign.
The document was altered to show that Page was "not a source" for the CIA, even though the original message from the CIA indicated otherwise.
The CIA had earlier told investigators in a memo that Page was an "operational contact" for the agency from 2008 to 2013
and provided information about his contacts with Russian intelligence officers.
During sentencing, Clinesmith said he was "ashamed" of his actions, adding that it had "harmed the very institutions that I cherish and admire."
"I have a duty to take responsibility for my actions and mistakes," Clinesmith told the court.
While the government argued for prison time, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg said that the 38-year-old attorney
had already suffered greatly since he was charged and pleaded guilty.
The case against Clinesmith was the first to be brought by federal prosecutor John Durham,
who was appointed by former Attorney General William Barr to review the origins of the FBI's Russia investigation.
Barr later named Durham special counsel, a move that ensures the politically charged probe will continue during the Biden administration.
Prosecutors said Page's status as a CIA source undermined investigators' belief that he was acting as an agent of a foreign power
and should've been disclosed to the judge. Clinesmith's attorneys said he did not knowingly lie about Page's relationship with the CIA.
Oh, really. Has he suffered as much as Carter Page and the others affected by the forged FISA docs?