Both Michael Cohen, one of the prosecution’s star witnesses in the New York criminal case against former President Trump, and Bob Costello, the Republican candidate’s only witness, have “significant credibility issues,” a CNN legal analyst said Tuesday.
“I think there are only two witnesses that I felt had serious credibility issues: Costello, who I mentioned earlier, and, of course, Michael Cohen. Whether you completely believe it or not, this guy “Stormy Daniels may have serious credibility issues, but I didn’t find anything outrageous about what she said,” said CNN’s Ellie Honig. “I think the jury will focus more on Michael Cohen than anything else.”
Mr. Cohen’s former legal adviser, Mr. Costello, took the stand Tuesday and testified that Mr. Cohen had said “many times” that there was nothing about Trump. President Trump is on trial in Manhattan after pleading not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records related to allegations that he paid hush money to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 presidential election.
Mr. Costello was reprimanded by the judge for mocking his sentence during his testimony, and the courtroom briefly emptied. Honig said Costello may have left jurors with a “bad taste” and argued it was a “bad way to end” for the defense.
CNN legal analyst Ellie Honig said Tuesday that both Michael Cohen and Bob Costello have credibility issues. (Screenshot/CNN)
NY v Trump: After charges are stayed, judge to consider defense motion to dismiss
“Michael Cohen’s testimony is 100 times more important to this case than Bob Costello’s testimony,” Honig added. “We know he lied to everyone. He made a lot of money off this, but it turns out he stole it from Trump Organics. So the question is, can they accept it? , whether it is acceptable on the basis of other evidence.”
After the prosecution finished testifying Monday, the defense called two witnesses, Costello and paralegal Daniel Sitko, who finished testifying the next day. Judge Juan Marchan dismissed the jury until after Memorial Day.
Honig said Costello could not be trusted because prosecutors claimed there were “inconsistencies in Bob Costello’s emails and his own.”
Honig argued on Monday that Cohen, Trump’s former fixer, admitted to stealing from the Trump Organization is actually a “more serious” crime than the one Trump is being tried for.
Michael Cohen leaves for a break during former President Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial in New York Supreme Court on Tuesday, October 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Stephen Jeremiah, File)
For more on Media and Culture, click here
“The fact that he was charged with theft is important because stealing $60,000 by fraud is theft in New York state, which is a more serious crime than falsifying business records,” he said. ” he said.
Under cross-examination Monday, Cohen said he stole thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization by inflating payments to technology companies that provided services to the organization.
This confession surprised multiple media experts at CNN and MSNBC, who were surprised that this fact was not revealed during questioning of Cohen by prosecutors.
Former president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump sits in court during his hush money trial in Manhattan Criminal Court, New York City, May 21, 2024. (Michael M. Santiago/Pool AFP via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
