Donald Trump’s legal team is moving toward a mistrial in the New York criminal case against the former president, it was reported Tuesday, following testimony from porn actress Stormy Daniels. live update From the court.
Last year, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) indicted Trump on 34 felonies for falsifying business records related to payments to his former lawyer Michael Cohen. Cohen claimed he paid Daniels $130,000 in so-called “hush money” to keep quiet about her alleged affair with the former president.
Mr. Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, argued that Mr. Daniels’ claims during direct questioning by prosecutors differed from what he had previously said in public.
Blanche argued on Tuesday that Daniels exceeded the “guardrails” set by the court, and “we are moving for a mistrial based on the testimony of this witness,” Acting Judge Juan Melchan said. told.
“Much of the testimony this witness has told today is very different from the story she was promoting in 2016,” Blanche said.
Daniels testified that she “blacked out” during the alleged sexual encounter with Trump. She also said they didn’t use condoms, and she noted that Trump was physically larger than her, which she claimed created the power dynamic.
Daniels told the jury: “I can only assume he passed out. He wasn’t drugged, he wasn’t drunk. He just doesn’t remember.” “The reason we hardly ever told anyone that we actually had sex was because we were embarrassed that we never stopped having sex.”
Blanche said that every time Daniels mentioned during her testimony that she met Trump after the alleged encounter, “she certified that it was in an open place, a public place.”
“She talked about a consensual encounter with President Trump that she was trying to sell…and that’s not what she talked about today,” he continued. “But now we hear it. And that’s the question: How can we ring a bell?”
Prosecutors argued that Daniels’ detailed testimony regarding the alleged sexual relationship provided evidence of the defendant’s “intent” and “motive to repay the charges.” They further argued that Daniels’ testimony “is not new testimony.”
“This kind of testimony is the kind of testimony that makes it impossible to come back from there, where you can’t even talk about the fact that someone is going out to campaign this afternoon,” Blanche said.
“This has nothing to do with why we are here, sir,” he added. “She testified today about her consent and the risks, but that’s not the story she was selling. I’m sorry, but that’s not the story she was selling.”
“I don’t think anyone is going to listen to what that witness said, I don’t think it has anything to do with the charges, and the whole testimony is so prejudicial that there’s a real risk that the jury will lose focus.” based on significant evidence,” Blanche explained.
Marchand denied Blanche’s motion for a mistrial, partially blaming the defense for not raising further objections during prosecutors’ questioning of Daniels.
“At a minimum, I agree, Mr. Blanche, that there were some things that were better left unsaid,” Marchand told Trump’s lawyers. “Having said that, I do not think we have reached the point where a miscarriage of justice is warranted.”
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