First, here's the full indictment, which the DOJ unsealed earlier today. https://www.justice.gov/file/1007271/download Now, let's go through some basics: [b]Who has been charged?[/b] Former Chair of the Trump Campaign Paul Manafort and his business associate Rick Gates. [b]What even is an indictment?[/b] An indictment is a formal charge that has been approved on by a grand jury, which are a group ordinary citizens who hear evidence. In the United States, you have a constitutional right to be charged by indictment if you are being charged with a felony. [b]What kind of indictment is this?[/b] This indictment is something called a "speaking indictment" -- instead of just saying the charges, it lists specific factual allegations. Certain crimes (like conspiracy) require the government to explain exactly what the defendants did and what the conspiracy was about. [b]What have they been charged with?[/b] So the first charge in this indictment is a conspiracy under 18 U.S.C. 371. That is a general federal conspiracy statute. If two people agree to commit a federal law and take a concrete step towards doing so (called an overt act), they've violated 371. Here, Manafort and Gates are charged with agreeing to defeat the lawful functions of the United States. This is a common charge in tax cases--It means they worked together to undermine the IRS. You can read more about the basis of the conspiracy charge by reading the parts of the indictment references in paragraphs 38 and 39. The second crime is a conspiracy (agreement) to launder money. That's when you move money in order to promote *another* crime. Money laundering is a challenge to prove because you need to show that other crime happened. Mueller did that. The other crime (it's called "specified unlawful activity") is a failure to register as a foreign agent. More on that later. The next crime is only against Manafort for failure to file a statement with the Treasury Department disclosing foreign bank accounts. Prosecutors love narrow charges like this because they're easy to prove. Either you disclosed or not, period. The next crime charged is against only Gates for essentially the same thing. Failing to disclose foreign bank accounts. The next count is for failing to register as a foreign agent. The law requires that anyone working in the U.S. as an agent of a foreign government must register with the Attorney General. This is another narrow crime that can be very straightforward to prove. (Registration is important so our government can monitor what foreign governments are doing within the United States.) The next crime (Count 11, p. 27) is one of the most important and revealing. This charges false and misleading registration statements. I don't have time to list the statements here, but Mueller is affirmatively alleging that he can prove beyond a reasonable doubt that each one of those statements is false, which says something about the work that Manafort and Gates were doing and allegedly lied about. The next crime is just a different way of charging the same false statements, which are a violation of both statutes. Prosecutors sometimes charge the same crime multiple ways because what they have to prove under each statute is slightly different. The last part of the indictment is something called the "Forfeiture Allegation." If property is acquired from unlawful activity, or if it is used in unlawful activity, it can be "forfeited" (taken) by the federal government. That forfeiture has to be alleged too. Here the government lists various property that they will try to forfeit as well as "substitute property" that they can take if the listed property is no longer available because it was sold or transferred. This post is long enough, so I'll leave the political impact the indictment adds to a later post. Edit: Part Two has been released. https://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post/237068582/0/0