A federal judge upheld an indictment by special counsel Robert Mueller against a Russian troll farm on Thursday.
In the opinion, Judge Dabney Friedrich denied Concord Management and Consulting's request to dismiss the indictment.
Let's back up a bit: In February, Mueller's team indicted 13 Russian citizens and three organizations, including Concord, for allegedly "knowingly and intentionally" conspiring to defraud the U.S. Federal Election Commission, the Department of Justice and the Department of State, among other charges.
As Newsy has previously reported, these people and groups were connected through Russia's Internet Research Agency, which is linked to the Kremlin.
Concord's attorney argued the indictment should be dismissed because there is no U.S. law that prohibits election interference.
But Judge Friedrich ruled that by allegedly failing to disclose certain vital information, Concord "conspired to impair" what she called "lawful government function."
The judge also said Concord went "too far" in saying Mueller must prove the Russians "knowingly" intended to violate U.S. laws.
She said in her opinion, "A general knowledge that U.S. agencies are tasked with collecting the kinds of information the defendants agreed to withhold and conceal would suffice."
As CNN points out, the 13 people in the indictment have have not appeared in U.S. courts because they're in Russia, where they're safe from extradition.
Additional reporting from Newsy affiliate CNN.
