MUELLER UPDATE | Special counsel probe did not exonerate Trump

WASHINGTON (AP)

11:30

Special counsel Robert Mueller said Wednesday he believed he was constitutionally barred from charging President Donald Trump with a crime but emphasized that his report did not exonerate the president.

The comments at an extraordinary press conference were Mueller's first public statements since his appointment as special counsel two years ago.

"If we had had confidence that the president clearly did not commit a crime, we would have said so," Mueller said. "We did not however make a determination as to whether the president did commit a crime."

The statement came amid demands for Mueller to testify on Capitol Hill about his findings and tension with Attorney General William Barr.

11:10 a.m.

Special counsel Robert Mueller (MUHL'-ur) says charging a president with a crime was "not an option" his team could consider in the Russia investigation.

Mueller says that he was bound by longstanding Justice Department opinions that say a president can't be indicted while in office.

In his first public comments in the probe, Mueller said on Wednesday "it would be unfair" to potentially accuse someone of a crime when the person couldn't stand trial to defend himself.

Mueller's comments echoed the findings in his public report.

Mueller's report revealed that President Donald Trump tried to seize control of the Russia probe and force Mueller's removal to stop him from investigating potential obstruction of justice by the Republican president. Trump has called the investigation a "witch hunt."

11:03 a.m.

Special counsel Robert Mueller says he's leaving the Justice Department now that he's concluded his Russia investigation.

Mueller made the announcement Wednesday in his first public statement since his appointment two years ago.

Mueller has been on the Justice Department's payroll since he formally concluded his probe in March. Last month, Attorney General William Barr publicly released a redacted version of his Russia report.

It's unclear what Mueller has been doing at the Justice Department since, though the Democrat-led House Judiciary Committee has been negotiating with his office in an attempt to secure his public testimony before Congress. So far, no deal has been made.

Mueller's report revealed that President Donald Trump tried to seize control of the Russia probe and force Mueller's removal to stop him from investigating potential obstruction of justice by the Republican president. Trump has called the investigation a "witch hunt."

9 a.m.

Special counsel Robert Mueller is set to make his first public statement on the Russia investigation Wednesday, the Justice Department said.

Mueller will speak at the Justice Department at 11 a.m. and won’t take any questions.

It was not clear what he intended to say, but the statement comes amid demands for Mueller to testify on Capitol Hill about his findings and tension with Attorney General William Barr over the handling of his report.

Mueller’s report into Russia meddling in the 2016 election did not find that Russia and the Trump campaign coordinated to sway the presidential election. It did not reach a conclusion on whether the president had obstructed justice.

Barr is currently in Alaska for work.