Manhattan DA Wants Trump Gag Order Ahead of Hush Money Trial
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Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is asking a judge to impose a gag order on Donald Trump in the leadup to the former president’s trial regarding hush money payments made to former porn star Stormy Daniels.
The request, filed on Monday, seeks to prevent Trump from speaking out against witnesses, investigators, jury members, and others involved in the criminal proceedings. The witnesses in question include former Trump “fixer” Michael Cohen. Bragg, whom Trump has attacked regularly since he was indicted in the case last year, would not be protected, as he is a publicly elected official. For jury protections, the gag order seeks to withhold the home addresses of jurors selected for the trial, as well as ban Trump from releasing their names, though it permits Trump and his lawyers to know them privately.
The gag order would also restrict Trump from asking other people to make statements on his behalf.
The court filing noted Trump’s “longstanding and perhaps singular history of using social media, speeches, rallies, and other public statements to attack individuals that he considers to be adversaries,” including those in the courtroom. The filing includes an NYPD affidavit tallying 89 documented threats made against Bragg, his family and other Manhattan DA officials since Trump was indicted last March.
Trump’s prior gag orders include one made during his civil fraud trial last year, in which he was prevented from commenting on courtroom staff, similar to the request Bragg seeks in the hush money case. A second gag order had been requested by federal prosecutors in the Justice Department’s case concerning Trump’s efforts to overthrow the 2020 election. The latter gag order was upheld by a federal appeals court in December.
Trump’s attorney’s have fought back against the previous gag orders and may appeal this one if it’s granted, saying his position as a presidential candidate makes his comments a matter of public interest.
Trump was indicted by a grand jury last year on 34 felony charges of falsifying business records to cover up payments made during the scandal. The hush money trial is currently scheduled to begin on March 25.
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