Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Judge Will Remind Trump at Tuesday Hearing About Ban on Attacking Witnesses
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 2 years ago on
May 23, 2023

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

The judge in Donald Trump’s criminal case is holding a hybrid hearing Tuesday to make doubly sure the former president is aware of new rules barring him from using evidence to attack witnesses.

Trump won’t have to show up to court for the afternoon hearing at a Manhattan courthouse, avoiding the mammoth security and logistical challenges that accompanied his arraignment last month.

Instead, the Republican will be connected by video conference, with his face beamed onto courtroom TV monitors. His lawyers and prosecutors must still appear in person.

Judge Juan Manuel Merchan agreed to the extra step of personally instructing Trump on the restrictions after listing them May 8 in what’s known as a protective order.

Trump is allowed to speak publicly about the case, but he risks being held in contempt if he uses evidence turned over by prosecutors in the pretrial discovery process to target witnesses or others involved in the case.

Trump pleaded not guilty April 4 to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to payments his company made to his former lawyer, Michael Cohen.

Prosecutors say those payments were intended to reimburse and compensate Cohen for orchestrating hush money payments during the 2016 campaign to bury allegations of extramarital sexual encounters. Trump denies having had extramarital flings and says the prosecution is politically motivated.

Merchan’s protective order bars Trump and his lawyers from disseminating evidence to third parties or posting it to social media, and it requires that certain, sensitive material shared by prosecutors be kept only by Trump’s lawyers, not Trump himself.

Prosecutors sought the order soon after Trump’s arrest, citing what they say is his history of making “harassing, embarrassing, and threatening statements” about people he’s tangled with in legal disputes.

Merchan, noting Trump’s “special” status as a former president and current candidate, has made clear that the protective order shouldn’t be construed as a gag order and that Trump has a right to publicly defend himself.

Trump’s lawyers are seeking to have his criminal case moved to federal court. It will continue in state court while that plays out.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

UP NEXT

18 Injured in Knife Attack in Hamburg, Report Says

9 of a Doctor’s 10 Children Are Killed in Israel’s Latest Strikes in Gaza

18 hours ago

Daisy Can’t See or Hear, but She Knows How to Love

23 hours ago

Clovis Memorial Run Brings the Community Together, Supports Senior Programs

The annual Clovis Memorial Run brought runners and walkers to the new Clovis Senior Activity Center on May 24, featuring multiple races that...

12 hours ago

12 hours ago

Clovis Memorial Run Brings the Community Together, Supports Senior Programs

17 hours ago

Attorney Error Lowers Fees in Fresno Measure P Case

18 hours ago

Trump Gives Commencement Address at West Point, Stressing a New Era

18 hours ago

9 of a Doctor’s 10 Children Are Killed in Israel’s Latest Strikes in Gaza

Blind and deaf, Daisy is a gentle senior pup who has blossomed in foster care and is now searching for a loving home. (Mell's Mutts)
23 hours ago

Daisy Can’t See or Hear, but She Knows How to Love

24 hours ago

How to Travel Without a Phone

1 day ago

Chukchansi Casino Hosts Job Fair to Fill 80 Food and Beverage Positions

California Wealth and Poverty
1 day ago

California’s High Living Costs and Rampant Poverty Sharpen Its Economic Divide

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend