Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, in a motion Tuesday, wants to hold former President Donald Trump in contempt for allegedly violating the gag order in his New York criminal hush money case.
Prosecutors have already requested Mr. Trump be fined $3,000 for three Truth Social posts that they say violated the gag order put in place by New York Judge Juan Merchan. The gag order says the former president can’t make statements about the witnesses and staff involved in the case or the families of Judge Merchan and Mr. Bragg.
“Defendant is not above the law, and he cannot simply disregard judicial orders that upset him. And both the public and the participants in the criminal trial deserve reassurance that the judicial system stands ready to protect them and to preserve the rule of law in the face of defendant’s extreme and deliberate provocations,” Mr. Bragg wrote in the motion.
He added that Mr. Trump’s “recent social media posts plainly violate the order because they target known witnesses concerning their participation in this criminal proceeding.”
Judge Merchan has scheduled an April 23 hearing to listen to prosecutors’ arguments.
This is the second day of Mr. Trump’s first criminal trial. He is facing 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with hush money payments his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.
His lawyers have said the reimbursement payments to Mr. Cohen were legal expenses and not part of a cover-up. He has denied the interaction with Ms. Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford.
Mr. Trump has railed against the case and the gag order on his Truth Social account.
“This conflicted, Trump Hating Judge won’t let me respond to people that are on TV lying and spewing hate all day long. He is running roughshod over my lawyers and legal team,” Mr. Trump wrote in a Tuesday post. “The New York System of ‘Justice’ is being decimated by critics from all over the World. I want to speak, or at least be able to respond. Election Interference! RIGGED, UNCONSTITUTIONAL TRIAL! Take off the Gag Order!!!”
• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.
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