By Akinsuroju Olubunmi
Judge warns Trump of jail time for violating Gag order
A New York judge overseeing Donald Trump’s landmark criminal trial has once again found the former US president in contempt of a gag order and has threatened him with jail time for further infractions.
Trump, 77, faces charges of falsifying business records to reimburse his lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a $130,000 payment made to a porn star just days before the 2016 election against Hillary Clinton. Stormy Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was threatening to go public with her story about a 2006 sexual encounter with Trump, which could have been detrimental to his presidential campaign.
Judge Juan Merchan held Trump in contempt and imposed a $1,000 fine on Monday for violating the gag order, which prohibits him from publicly attacking witnesses, jurors, or court staff and their relatives. Last week, Trump was fined a total of $9,000, but Merchan stated that these penalties were insufficient as a deterrent, and he would consider jail time for any further violations.
“While I do not relish the idea of imposing a jail sentence, I want you to understand that I will,” Merchan cautioned Trump, who remained silent in the courtroom. The judge emphasized the importance of upholding the dignity of the justice system and condemned Trump’s defiance as a direct assault on the rule of law.
Merchan’s ruling comes during the third week of testimony in the high-stakes trial of the Republican presidential candidate, marking the first time a former president has faced criminal charges. The judge acknowledged that incarcerating Trump for contempt would be a weighty decision and a logistical challenge, particularly given his around-the-clock Secret Service protection.
Prosecutors called Jeffrey McConney, a Trump Organization executive, as their next witness to testify about the reimbursements to Cohen for the hush money paid to Daniels. Both Daniels, 45, and Cohen, 57, are expected to testify at some point during the trial.
Last week, Hope Hicks, a former close advisor to Trump, testified about the “crisis” that engulfed his 2016 presidential campaign after the emergence of the Access Hollywood tape, where Trump was heard boasting about groping women. Hicks described the tape as damaging and acknowledged that it triggered a campaign effort to silence Daniels over her claim of a sexual encounter with Trump.
The trial has attracted widespread attention from the legal and political communities as Trump seeks to reclaim the White House from President Joe Biden in November’s election. Alongside the New York case, Trump faces indictments in Washington and Georgia on charges related to attempting to overturn the 2020 election results and illegally storing top-secret documents taken from the White House.
Judge warns Trump , gag order, hush money.