Trump trial stay: Ex-president threatened with jail for future gag order violations | EUROtoday

Judge Juan Merchan begins the day by handing down a ruling on the extra violations of the gag order imposed on Donald Trump.

The former president was beforehand fined $9,000 for 9 violations.

Judge Merchan says: “It appears that the $1,000 fines are not serving as a deterrent. … therefore this court will have to consider a jail sanction … It’s important you understand that the last thing I want to do is put you in jail.”

It’s “truly a last resort” and “to take that step would be disruptive to these proceedings” and regarding for all court docket workers, officers, Secret Service, amongst others.

“The magnitude of such a decision is not lost on me … But that the end of the day I have a job to do, and part of that job is to protect the dignity of the justice system … Your continued violations … threaten to interfere with the administration of justice, and constitute a direct attack on the rule of law.”

Judge Merchan doesn’t learn the complete order out however arms it to the defence group.

Mr Trump is fined an extra $1,000 for one more violation of the gag order and has till 2.15pm right this moment to take away the offending submit from his Truth Social account.

“Defendant is hereby put on notice that if appropriate and warranted, future violations of its lawful orders will be punishable by incarceration…”

Here’s Democratic senator Chris Coons this morning hitting again in opposition to the Republican presidential candidate’s newest ludicrous assault on his White House successor.

That is anybody’s guess because the prosecution has been protecting their playing cards very near their chest in order to not topic any potential witnesses to on-line harassment forward of their testimony.

Here’s who we’ve heard from to this point:

• Former National Enquirer writer David Pecker
• Form Trump Organization government assistant Rhona Graff
• Michel Cohen’s former banker Gary Farro
• CSPAN’s Robert X Browning
• Philip Thompson, who recorded Trump’s deposition within the E Jean Carroll case
• Keith Davidson, a former lawyer for Karen McDougal and Stormy Daniels
• DA forensic analyst Doug Daus
• DA paralegal Georgia Longstreet
• Longtime Trump communications director Hope Hicks

It doesn’t appear possible that the court docket will hear from a giant ticket witness similar to Stormy Daniels or Michael Cohen to kick off the third week of testimony — although you by no means know — there may be hypothesis it is perhaps somebody from the White House or Trump Organization who can discuss administrative points and processes to construct the falsification of enterprise data case.

Here’s extra from Alex Woodward contained in the courtroom:

“The judge could at some point today issue another bench decision about the gag order after prosecutors’ latest contempt motion. Last week he wasn’t convinced by the defense and was particularly impatient and frustrated with lawyer Todd Blanche’s arguments defending Trump’s comments about David Pecker.

“At one point Judge Merchan snapped while Blanche was talking. ‘Did he violate the gag order? That’s what I want to know,’ he said. ‘He spoke about the jury, right? And he said the jury was 95 per cent Democrats and the jury had been rushed through, and the implication that this was not a fair jury?’”

With that in thoughts, right here’s Alex’s report on final week’s listening to.

In case you missed this one late final week, right here’s Luke Skywalker himself dropping in at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue to endorse the president and inform him “May the Fourth be with you” (no I didn’t spell that unsuitable – it was 4 May on Saturday, you see).

Here’s extra on the previous president’s Sunday marketing campaign cease from our F1 correspondent Kieran Jackson.

Here’s your newest have a look at the scene in Manhattan as the previous president prepares for court docket as soon as extra.

Also on TV yesterday threatening more election aggravation in November was the new RNC co-chair, Trump daughter-in-law and would-be country music star Lara Trump, apparently prepared to contest the delayed counting of mail-in ballots posted by American soldiers serving overseas.

Here’s the very newest from Alex Woodwardcourtside for us as soon as extra in Manhattan:

“It’s a wet and gray morning by the courthouse for the start of the third week of witness testimony.

“On Friday, we heard from Hope Hicks, whose testimony went behind the scenes of the Trump campaign’s response and damage control to the Access Hollywood tape, and how Trump told Hicks that Michael Cohen paid Stormy Daniels “out of the kindness of his heart.”

“But Hicks didn’t believe that, she said, moments before she broke down in tears on the stand under a brief line of questions from Trump’s defense.

“That moment gave jurors a crucial detail: a key member of Trump’s team, while he was president, confirmed that he knew that Cohen paid Stormy Daniels.

“We are moving at a relatively quick pace, with only a handful of higher-profile prosecution witnesses left, though we don’t know who they are or when they’re coming. This could take a couple more weeks, and then defense attorneys will have their turn before we get to closing statements and deliberation.

“Justice Juan Merchan, however, is expected to issue another decision on gag order violations, facing another potentially $4,000 fine or other more sever sanctions. He could rule from the bench as early as today.”