Fox News Channel’s senior judicial analyst said Wednesday that the Michael Cohen sentencing makes it clear that prosecutors in New York think they can prove President Trump has committed a felony.
Andrew Napolitano, a former New Jersey state judge and prolific legal author, told Fox News that federal prosecutors with the Southern District of New York tipped their hand in their legal filings in the Cohen case, in which Mr. Trump’s longtime fixer was sentenced to prison for paying hush money to women who claimed affairs with the then-tycoon.
“We’ve learned that federal prosecutors here in New York City … have evidence that the president of the United States committed a felony by ordering and paying Michael Cohen to break the law,” the judicial analyst said. “How do we know that? They told that to a federal judge.”
“Under the rules, they can’t tell that to a federal judge unless they actually have that hardcore evidence,” he said, adding that they must also move against Mr. Trump legally.
“Under the rules, they can’t tell that to a federal judge unless they intend to do something with that evidence,” he said.
Host Shepard Smith then asked his guest: “Prosecutors have told us through these filings that they have evidence that the president committed a felony?”
“The felony is paying Michael Cohen to commit a felony,” Mr. Napolitano said. “It’s pretty basic.”
• Victor Morton can be reached at vmorton@washingtontimes.com.
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