The New York State Court of Appeals has just rejected former President Donald Trump's recent request to overturn the gag order that blocks him from publicly speaking about witnesses and jurors during his hush money trial.
Last week, Trump confirmed that his lawyers asked the court to issue a ruling to throw out the order that prohibits him from talking about the said case, clearly violating his First Amendment rights.
"I just want to let you know that we've just filed a major motion in the appellate division concerning the absolutely unconstitutional gag order, where I’m essentially not allowed to talk to you about anything meaningful that's going on in the case. And many good things are going on with the case. It shouldn't have been filed," he said. His team filed a motion on May 8, which has been sealed and was inaccessible, according to the court docket. The Manhattan district attorney's office filed a response to the motion, but it was also sealed.
According to Justice Juan Merchan, who issued the order and later expanded it, he "properly determined that the petitioner's public statements posed a significant threat to the integrity of the testimony of witnesses and potential witnesses."
Last week, Trump's lawyers already asked a state appeals court to issue a ruling to stall the trial and allow them to take their request to a higher court. But it rejected the former president's request.
They also declined an attempt to pause the enforcement of the gag order, which was issued in March after prosecutors requested it. Merchan ruled that Trump violated his directive 10 times before threatening to jail the former president if he makes future comments that he believes violate that order.
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On April 30, the judge fined Trump $9,000 for a series of statements attacking trial witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels. The prosecutors said that the ex-POTUS knowingly and wilfully breached the "crystal clear, unequivocal lines drawn up by the court."
On May 6, Merchan fined him again $1,000 for a statement criticizing the makeup of the jury. "It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent," Merchan said. "It's important to understand that the last thing I want to do is to put you in jail. You are the former president of the United States and possibly the next president, as well."
"Your continued willful violations of this court's orders threaten to interfere with the … administration of justice," Merchan said before issuing a warning about possible jail time. (Related: Trump hush money trial is blatant election interference designed to keep him off the campaign trail.)
Trump's ex-personal lawyer wants his former boss convicted
Trump's ex-lawyer Michael Cohen recently appeared as the prosecution's main witness during the cross-examination in the former president's hush-money criminal trial. He said he hoped Trump be found guilty and was "sure" he wanted to see him convicted in this case.
He was called by prosecutors to testify about making a $130,000 hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election so she wouldn't speak about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump. According to Cohen, he submitted phony invoices for legal services to cover up reimbursements for the money.
As Trump showed no reaction through the proceedings, Cohen fought a legal showdown with the ex-president's legal team. He repeatedly identified Trump as the "mastermind" of the payoff scheme. Cohen said he got the money to Daniels "to ensure that the story … would not affect Mr. Trump's chances of becoming president."
He detailed that the repayments began shortly after a meeting with Trump in the Oval Office in Feb. 2017. He said the then-president asked him if he needed money and told him to "just make sure you deal with Allen" Weisselberg, then the Trump Organization's chief financial officer. Weisselberg was recently jailed for lying at his former boss' civil fraud trial.
Cohen also testified that invoices for $35,000 each month to the then-Trump Organization Controller Jeffrey McConney were not for legal services. He admitted that he tried to mislead federal investigators about the Daniels payment in the wake of news articles detailing the transaction when he admitted in public that he, not Trump, did the deal. He did this, he claimed, to "demonstrate loyalty."
According to Cohen, he regrets the lying and bullying he had done on Trump's behalf to the point that he had "violated his moral compass" defending the former president. He added that his family persuaded him to stop protecting his former boss.
Visit Trump.news for more stories related to the ongoing legal battle the former president is fighting.
Watch the video below where Trump speaks with the press after a hush money trial hearing.
This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com.
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