NY - Ex-President Donald Trump, charged with 34 criminal counts of falsifying business records, Apr 2023, Trial 25 Mar 2024 #3

Friday, May 3rd:
*Trial continues (Day 7) (@ 9:30am ET) – NY - *Donald John Trump (76/now 77) was indicted (3/30/23), formally arrested, charged & arraigned (4/4/23) with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the 1st degree & conspiracy in connection with hush money payments to two women [Stephanie Clifford aka adult actor Stormy Daniels & former Playboy model Karen McDougal] before the 2016 presidential election. Plead not guilty. Warrant vacated, released on own recognizance. New York County
New York: Submitting false invoices or checks. All 34 counts against Trump are felony charges (class E) instead of misdemeanors.
Trial began on 4/15/24 with jury selection & ended on 4/19/24. 12 jurors & 6 alternates. [Jurors: 7 men & 5 women/6 Alternates: 5 women & 1 man].
Trial began on 4/22/24. Trial is expected to run 4 days a week [Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays & Fridays].
New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Marchan presiding. Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg. Prosecutors are Susan Hoffinger, Joshua Steinglass & Matthew Colangelo. Defense attorneys Todd Blanche, Emil Bove, Susan Necheles & Gedalia Stern.
Trump is required to attend each day in person — although the judge could grant permission for special absences. Trump has vowed to attend court during the day & travel to campaign events at night.

Investigation & court info from 3/30/23 thru 4/12/24 & Jury Selection Days 1-4 (4/15-4/19/24) & Trial Day 1-5 (4/22-4/30/24) reference post #981 here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...s-apr-2023-trial-25-mar-2024-2.673176/page-50

5/2/24 Thursday, Trial Day 6: *Before bringing in the jury, Judge Juan Merchan held contempt hearing on 4 more incidents.
*Prosecutor Christopher Conroy is going through Trump's alleged violations of the judge's gag order. Violations: From remarks in the hallway outside of court on April 22: re witness Michael Cohen. From an interview Trump gave the same day to "Just The News, No Noise" on the network Real America’s Voice: talking about the jurors. From an interview Trump gave an ABC News affiliate in Pennsylvania on April 22: re witnesses Michael Cohen & David Pecker. From a press event in Manhattan on April 25 when asked about the testimony of former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker. Prosecutor Christopher Conroy made clear that prosecutors believe Trump is violating the gag order on purpose, not on accident. He not seeking jail time.
*Todd Blanche, Trump's attorney, is responding to prosecutors' claims that Trump violated his gag order multiple times, saying that the statements Trump made are part of his presidential campaign, not an attempt to influence proceedings in the courtroom. Merchan replied that Trump’s comments [re David Pecker] could affect other witnesses. “It’s about what everybody else ... sees Mr. Trump saying & not saying. It goes to the integrity of the proceedings.”
*Judge Juan Merchan does not seem particularly impressed by Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche’s contention that the gag order is unfair to Trump because he cannot respond to attacks against Trump by people like Michael Cohen, an expected trial witness protected by the gag order, and media coverage of other trial witnesses’ testimony. “They’re not defendants in the case. They’re not subject to the gag order,” Merchan says flatly. No decision was made – no outlet said anything.
*State witness: Keith Davidson [an attorney who once represented Stormy Daniels & Karen McDougal] continues on direct & cross-exam. Doug Daus verified some records that were used in the trial. Daus was in Iraq from 2009 to 2011 doing forensic data analysis; he is now a supervising computer forensic analyst in the DA’s office.
For more info see posts #982 & 983 (articles) here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...s-apr-2023-trial-25-mar-2024-2.673176/page-50
Trial continues on Friday, 5/3/24,
 

"Shaking his head": Trump "in disbelief" as lawyer admits he went out of his way to bash witnesses​


Not a happy looking Mr Trump, or his lawyer as they leave the trial for the day.
 
Prosecutors are admitting dozens of Trump's social media posts, including some tweets from 2016 where he alluded to "made up events that never even happened," and said, "Nobody has more respect for women than me!"
---
Trump just wrote on a yellow post-it note and handed it to his lawyer, Todd Blanche, as he's making his argument in court.

This was the first time we've seen Trump do this.
 
Prosecutors have called Hope Hicks, who worked on Trump's 2016 campaign and in the White House, as their next witness. Before she could be brought into the room, the defense objected to her serving as a witness. The lawyers are now holding a sidebar with the judge.
 
Prosecutors have called Hope Hicks, who worked on Trump's 2016 campaign and in the White House, as their next witness. Before she could be brought into the room, the defense objected to her serving as a witness. The lawyers are now holding a sidebar with the judge.
This is going to be very interesting!
IMO
 
Hicks recalls receiving the email from Washington Post journalist David Fahrenthold, which contained the transcript of the Access Hollywood tape, and going to another floor to speak about it with Jason Miller, Kellyanne Conway, Jared Kushner, Stephen Miller, and maybe Chris Christie.

“Everyone was just absorbing the shock of it," Hicks testified, saying that she interrupted Trump's debate prep session to speak with his advisors about it.

When Trump read the transcript, he told Hicks, "That doesn’t sound like something I would say.”
 
Asked for her reaction when she learned of the "Access Hollywood" tape from the Washington Post reporter, Hicks said she was "very concerned," adding that she had only the transcript and not the tape itself.

She said she forwarded the reporter's email to other top campaign officials, including Jason Miller, David Bosse, Kellyanne Conway and Steve Bannon, writing, "Need to hear the tape to be sure, deny, deny, deny." She said she then went to speak to the group of them on the 25th floor of Trump Tower.

She conceded that her strategy of denying the conversation on the tape proved to be more difficult once the recording came out.

When the conversation turned to how they were going to respond, Mr. Trump felt like it was not a big deal, “not anything to get so upset over,” “pretty standard stuff for two guys.”
 
No sooner does Trump lawyer Emil Bove's cross begin than Hope Hicks starts to tear up and cry. Afternoon recess.



Hicks just gave the prosecution exactly what they needed, tying Trump to the Stormy payment around the election. This was very powerful to hear in court as she broke down crying


Before Hicks broke down, Colangelo asked if Trump said anything else during their 2018 convo abt Cohen's payment to Daniels. According to Hicks, Trump said he was glad Cohen made the payment & that it was better to be dealing w/ the story then (in 2018) than before election

 
Last edited:
Monday, May 6th:
*Trial continues (Day 8) (@ 9:30am ET) – NY - *Donald John Trump (76/now 77) was indicted (3/30/23), formally arrested, charged & arraigned (4/4/23) with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the 1st degree & conspiracy in connection with hush money payments to two women [Stephanie Clifford aka adult actor Stormy Daniels & former Playboy model Karen McDougal] before the 2016 presidential election. Plead not guilty. Warrant vacated, released on own recognizance. New York County
New York: Submitting false invoices or checks. All 34 counts against Trump are felony charges (class E) instead of misdemeanors.
Trial began on 4/15/24 with jury selection & ended on 4/19/24. 12 jurors & 6 alternates. [Jurors: 7 men & 5 women/6 Alternates: 5 women & 1 man].
Trial began on 4/22/24. Trial is expected to run 4 days a week [Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays & Fridays].
New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Marchan presiding. Manhattan Attorney General Alvin Bragg. Prosecutors are Susan Hoffinger, Joshua Steinglass & Matthew Colangelo. Defense attorneys Todd Blanche, Emil Bove, Susan Necheles & Gedalia Stern.
Trump is required to attend each day in person — although the judge could grant permission for special absences. Trump has vowed to attend court during the day & travel to campaign events at night.

Investigation & court info from 3/30/23 thru 4/12/24 & Jury Selection Days 1-4 (4/15-4/19/24) & Trial Day 1-6 (4/22-5/2/24) reference post #2 here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...-records-apr-2023-trial-25-mar-2024-3.711716/

5/3/24 Friday, Trial Day 7: *The hearing (5/2/24) concluded without a ruling, but Merchan indicated that he was likely to find Trump in violation of his gag order once again, appearing most perturbed by his comments on the jury.
*Judge Merchan addressed Trump's comments yesterday at his end-of-day press conference, falsely claiming he's gagged from testifying. "I want to stress to Mr. Trump: You have an absolute right to testify at trial. "The Constitution guarantees that right, he emphasizes.
*State witnesses: Doug Daus verified some records that were used in the trial. Daus was in Iraq from 2009 to 2011 doing forensic data analysis; he is now a supervising computer forensic analyst in the DA’s office. [He inspected data from the phones of Cohen, including text messages & secret recordings]. Back on stand for cross exam. Georgia Longstreet. She is a paralegal in the Manhattan DA’s office who worked on Trump's case for about a year & a half. Prosecutors admitted dozens of Trump's social media posts, including some tweets from 2016 where he alluded to "made up events that never even happened," and said, "Nobody has more respect for women than me!" Hope Hicks, who worked on Trump's 2016 campaign & in the White House. Defense objected to her serving as a witness. Judge says Hicks will testify.
*After the trial day concluded, Merchan ruled with Trump’s attorneys & said that if Trump takes the stand to testify, prosecutors aren’t allowed to bring up the fact that Merchan had held him in contempt for violating his gag order, saying it would be “prejudicial”.
For more info see post #7 (article} here:
https://www.websleuths.com/forums/t...-records-apr-2023-trial-25-mar-2024-3.711716/
Trial continues on Monday, 5/6/24,
 
Judge Merchan just found Trump in criminal contempt — again — for violating his gag order for a 10th time and fined him an additional $1,000.He warned Trump: "His continued willful violations of this Court’s orders threaten the administration of justice and constitute a direct attack on the rule of law. I cannot allow that to continue."Merchan said he will, if necessary, impose a jail sentence.


 
I bet he violates the Gag order again within 24 hours.

JMO
He was calling the judge "conflicted" again before he went into to court today.

Moments before heading into the courtroom, Trump accused Judge Juan Merchan of being “conflicted” and complained about the judge’s gag order against him.

From NBC's rolling coverage.
 

Staff online

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
135
Guests online
2,530
Total visitors
2,665

Forum statistics

Threads
594,073
Messages
17,998,614
Members
229,307
Latest member
PRJ
Back
Top