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John Dowd, who
has represented key figures in a variety white-collar criminal
matters and investigations, has joined the president's defense
team led by New York lawyer Marc Kasowitz, Mark Corallo, a
spokesman for the team, said on Friday.
Another well-known white-collar Washington lawyer will likely
join the team shortly, according to a person familiar with the
matter.
Dowd, 76, represented U.S. Senator John McCain on congressional
ethics charges in the "Keating Five" banking scandal in the late
1980s and early 1990s. McCain was cleared in the matter.
In 1989, Dowd's investigation on behalf of Major League Baseball
led to former Hall of Famer Pete Rose being banned from the
sport for betting on games while he was manager of the
Cincinnati Reds.
Dowd also defended Galleon Group hedge fund founder Raj
Rajaratnam in a 2011 trial brought by federal prosecutors in New
York over insider trading. Rajaratnam was found guilty and
sentenced to 11 years in prison.
Earlier in his career, Dowd served in the U.S. Marine Corps and
was part of a U.S. Department of Justice organized crime unit.
He went into private practice in 1978. He worked for many years
at the law firm of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, retiring in
2015.
Along with Kasowitz and Dowd, the other lawyers on Trump's team
so far are Jay Sekulow, a conservative activist with a radio
call-in show, and Michael Bowe, a longtime partner in Kasowitz's
firm.
Mueller is investigating possible ties between Trump's campaign
and the Russian government, which U.S. officials have said
meddled in the 2016 election.
Russia has denied such interference. The White House has denied
any collusion with Moscow.
The special counsel also is looking into whether Trump has
sought to obstruct the investigation, a person familiar with the
inquiry said on Thursday.
Former FBI Director James Comey testified earlier this month
that Trump asked him to drop the bureau’s investigation of
former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
The Senate and House Intelligence Committees are also
investigating possible ties between Russia and the Trump
campaign.
(Reporting by Karen Freifeld in New York; Editing by Anthony Lin
and Lisa Shumaker)
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