NEW YORK (AP) — Former President donald trump He is scheduled to appear in court for his important hearing on Thursday new york hush criminal caseit looks increasingly likely that the case will go to trial next month.
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan It is expected to rule on important pre-trial issues and say with certainty whether the trial will begin on March 25 as scheduled. If that happens, the New York case would be Trump's first trial. 4 criminal charges to go to court.
Mr. Trump's lawyers urged Mr. Marchand: dismiss the lawsuit completely. The judge's recent activity suggests that is unlikely to happen. In recent weeks, Marchan has been in contact with his defense attorney and Manhattan prosecutors to plan jury selection for the March trial, according to court records.
Delays could cause conflict within the Trump administration crowded legal calendar.
Trump, the Republican frontrunner seeking to return to the White House, has not appeared in court in the New York case. Since the indictment last Aprilalthough he did Make a video appearance at the public hearing in May The judge therefore warned against posting evidence on social media or using it to attack witnesses.
Now, let's review the current status of this incident.
What is this case about?
Trump's New York lawsuit includes alleged plot to thwart crime Stories about his private life could be damaging if they become public. During the 2016 presidential election campaign.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Trump was indicted last year. falsified internal records kept by his company, the Trump Organization.to hide the true nature of payments made to then-attorney Michael Cohen for helping cover up an article alleging Trump had an extramarital affair.
The case centers on the porn actor's payments to two women. stormy daniels and former playboy model Karen McDougall,but also, Trump Tower doorman claimed to have a conversation. Regarding President Trump's birth of a child out of wedlock. President Trump has denied any allegations of sexual contact.
Cohen paid Daniels $130,000; Publisher of the supermarket tabloid National Enquirer Pay McDougall $150,000 for an act known as “catch and kill.”
The Trump Organization then reimbursed Mr. Cohen far more than he spent, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said the company recorded payments made in monthly installments and year-end bonus checks as legal costs. Cohen said he made $420,000 in a few months.
The records in question include general ledger entries, invoices and checks, which prosecutors allege have been falsified.
What crime will Trump be charged with?
Trump is Charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records. The charge is a Class E felony in New York State, the lowest level of felonies in the state. There is no guarantee that a prison sentence will be imposed if convicted, but the maximum penalty is four years in prison.
Because this is a state case, Trump will not be able to pardon himself if he becomes president again. Presidential pardons apply only to federal crimes.
To convict Trump of a felony, prosecutors would have to prove that he not only falsified business records or made false entries, but also a misdemeanor. But he did it to cover up another crime..
Prosecutors did not identify other crimes in Trump's indictment, but later said there was evidence that Trump's actions were intended to cover up campaign finance crimes.
Prosecutors said the payments to Mr. Daniels and Mr. McDougall violated federal limits on corporate and individual campaign contributions and were intended to “conceal harmful information from voters.”
Prosecutors also said that treating the payments to Mr. Cohen as income rather than redemption constituted a tax crime, even if the government was not defrauded of taxes.
Cohen pleads guilty to campaign finance crimes About his role in the alleged hush money scheme. The publisher of the National Enquirer entered into a non-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors who deemed the payments to Mr. McDougall a non-prosecution case. illegal corporate donations To the Trump camp.
What are Trump and his lawyers saying?
Trump denies wrongdoing and maintains his innocence. He has repeatedly denounced the hush-money investigation and indictment as “political persecution.” His lawyers argue that the payments to Mr. Cohen were legitimate legal fees and not part of a cover-up.
among them request that the case be thrown outAs for what decision Marchand will make at Thursday's hearing, Trump's lawyers say that Democrat Bragg has staged a so-called “zombie scandal” to thwart the Republican front-runner's chances of taking back the White House. They accused him of rehashing it.
Bragg's predecessor, Silas Vance Jr. refused to file suit on the same charges..
“After five years of meandering, stop-and-frisk investigations with inexplicable and unconstitutional delays, the District Attorney's Office has filed a disjointed, politically motivated indictment marred by legal flaws.” Trump's lawyers, Todd Blanche and Susan Necheres, argued in a statement on Monday. Page Motion to Dismiss the Case.
What does this incident mean for Trump?
new york indictment, the bill, introduced on March 30, 2023, makes Trump the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges.Trump was subsequently indicted. georgia and Washington DC He is accused of plotting to overturn his defeat in the 2020 election. florida To store confidential documents.
Despite the damage to President Trump's reputation and the spectacle of his historic arraignment last April, the New York case is perhaps the least risky. President Trump's four indictments. A conviction would give Trump a new historic moniker as the first former president to be convicted, but it is unlikely that he would receive a serious sentence.
New York court records and newspaper archives show that defendants convicted of a felony charge of falsifying business records are rarely sentenced to prison for that charge alone. This charge is often combined with a more serious felony, such as grand larceny.
By contrast, the most serious charges in Trump's election cases in Washington, D.C., and Georgia carry penalties of up to 20 years in prison. Each of the more than 30 intentional retention charges in the Florida classified documents case carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
What's at issue at Thursday's hearing?
Marchand will issue his ruling in response to various requests from Trump's lawyers and prosecutors. Defense Motion to Dismiss the Case Completely.
If Machan admits the motion, the charges will be dropped and there will be no trial. Trump's lawyers are seeking a hearing to examine constitutional and procedural issues, saying they would “provide alternative grounds” for dropping the charges if Trump denies the charges.
These issues include that Mr. Trump was the subject of selective prosecution, that years of delays in bringing charges violated Mr. Trump's legal rights, and that the alleged leak of information about the grand jury investigation It includes the allegation that there was “political pressure on prosecutors and grand jurors to indict Mr. Trump.” ”
Prosecutor's response to defense motion, said the evidence “more than supports” the charges. They claim Trump is seeking special treatment because he is a current presidential candidate and is trying to “avoid criminal liability.”
Prosecutors have accused Mr. Trump's lawyers of ignoring deadlines to submit evidence and engaging in potential witness intimidation by subpoenaing Mr. Cohen in October demanding extensive documents.
What else happened?
Two big developments: Trump's lawyer asked Marchan distances himself from lawsuit and they tried to get it transferred from state court to federal court. Both failed.
In August, Marchand rejects President Trump's request to resignHe denied the defense's claim that he was biased because he gave cash to the Democratic Party and his daughter is a political consultant for the Democratic Party. The judge acknowledged making several small donations to Democratic causes during the 2020 campaign, including a $15 donation to Trump's rival Joe Biden. But he said he was confident in his “ability to be fair and impartial.”
In July, A federal judge rejected President Trump's bid to move the lawsuit. to federal court. Trump's lawyers had argued that the alleged acts took place while he was president, so he could not be tried in state court. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein ruled that the hush money case involved the president's personal, rather than official, affairs.
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