Judge slaps Stone with full gag order

WASHINGTON — A federal judge ordered Roger Stone not to discuss his criminal case with anyone and issued a stinging reprimand Thursday over the longtime Trump confidant’s decision to post a photo on Instagram of the judge with what appeared to be the crosshairs of a gun.

U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson said Stone would “pose a danger” to others in the case unless she modified the terms of his release to include a full gag order.

Stone, 66, had taken the witness stand to try to explain his post and apologize to the judge, repeatedly telling her that he had made an egregious and inexcusable mistake.

“Thank you, but the apology rings quite hollow,” the judge shot back.

Stone has pleaded not guilty to charges he lied to Congress, engaged in witness tampering and obstructed a congressional investigation into possible coordination between Russia and Trump’s 2016 campaign. The charges stem from conversations he had during the campaign about Wikileaks, the anti-secrecy group.

Stone has remained free on a $250,000 personal recognizance bond. Last week, Jackson issued a limited order that prevented him from discussing his case near the courthouse and generally prohibited his lawyers, prosecutors and witnesses from making public comments that could “pose a substantial likelihood” of prejudicing potential jurors. But that order stopped short of imposing a broad ban on comments.

Stone had been ordered to court Thursday after he posted a photo of Jackson with what appeared to be crosshairs near her head. Stone removed the photo and apologized before later saying the photo was “misinterpreted” and that the symbol was actually a logo, not crosshairs.

He dismissed any suggestion he was trying to threaten the judge. Stone