A federal judge ordered Tuesday that former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort be moved to a jail in Alexandria, Va., so he can more easily communicate with his lawyers.
The Washington Post reported that Judge T.S. Ellis agreed to move Manafort from Northern Neck Jail, which is about two hours away from Washington, D.C., to the jail in Alexandria.
{mosads}Manafort requested last week that his trial be delayed until the fall because his location made it difficult to consult with lawyers. He also requested the trial be moved from Alexandria to Roanoke, arguing Northern Virginia is an unfair setting because it skews liberal.
Prosecutors for special counsel Robert Mueller have until Friday to respond to those motions, The Washington Post reported.
In the meantime, Ellis said Manafort will be transferred to Alexandria “to ensure that the defendant has access to his counsel and can adequately prepare his defense.”
Manafort has pleaded not guilty to charges of money laundering and bank fraud, among others. His trial is scheduled to begin in September.
Manafort was put in jail last month after Mueller’s team argued he violated the terms of his pretrial release conditions. Prosecutors said Manafort tried to tamper with potential witnesses by persuading them to lie to investigators about lobbying work for former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych.
Manafort, who has unsuccessfully sought to have the charges dismissed, is one of four former Trump associates to face indictment or plead guilty thus far in Mueller’s probe into Russian influence in the 2016 presidential election.