After suffering a string of defeats in their efforts to delay or kill the New York hush money trial, lawyers for former President Donald Trump file another appeal to try to remove Judge Juan Merchan from the proceedings and to challenge his ruling that Trump is not protected from prosecution by presidential immunity. Here are the latest legal developments involving the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.
New York hush money
Trump files another last-ditch attempt to delay hush money trial
Key players: Judge Juan Merchan, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, adult film star Stormy Daniels, New York Associate Justice Cynthia Kern
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On Wednesday, Trump’s lawyers appealed Merchan’s ruling that presidential immunity did not protect Trump from being prosecuted for violating New York tax and campaign finance laws when he paid Daniels $130,000 during the 2016 presidential election to hide an alleged extramarital affair with Daniels, CNN reported.
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The two-page filing with a New York appeals court also challenged Merchan’s decision not to recuse himself from the case brought by Bragg based on how the judge has handled the case.
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The trial is scheduled to begin on April 15.
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This week alone, appeals court judges have denied Trump’s efforts to delay the trial while Trump appeals Merchan’s refusal to change the venue from Manhattan to Staten Island. He is also appealing the judge’s expansion of a gag order that prevents Trump from attacking witnesses, court staff and their families.
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Trump’s lawyers have also unsuccessfully appealed Merchan’s refusal to recuse himself from the case, his ruling that Daniels can testify, as well as his decision that the case can move forward on the merits and be held in state, rather than federal, court.
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With Tuesday’s latest ruling from Kern, Trump has now lost 10 previous attempts to delay the start of the hush money trial.
Why it matters: Trump’s lawyers have aggressively sought to keep the first criminal case against a former U.S. president from going to trial. Time is running out on that effort, however.
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Tuesday, April 9
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For the second time in two days, an appeals court judge rejects a motion by former President Donald Trump that would have delayed the April 15 start of his hush money trial. New York Associate Justice Cynthia Kern declines Trump’s motion, which argued that the case should be postponed while he appeals Judge Juan Merchan’s gag order preventing Trump from commenting on witnesses, court staff and their families during the trial. Here are the latest legal developments involving the presumptive Republican presidential nominee for 2024.
New York hush money
Appeals court judge rejects Trump bid to delay trial over gag order challenge
Key players: New York Associate Justice Cynthia Kern, Judge Juan Merchan, Merchan’s daughter Loren Merchan, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, adult film star Stormy Daniels
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Only minutes after hearing arguments from Trump’s lawyers on a motion to delay the start of the trial until after they could appeal Merchan’s expanded gag order, Kern denied the motion, CNN reported.
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Although Trump is appealing Kern’s decision with the full appeals court, that will not delay the Monday start of the hush money trial, meaning that Trump will still be bound by Merchan’s gag order until at least April 29, when the appeals court has requested written arguments on the matter.
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Merchan expanded his original gag order on Trump after the former president repeatedly attacked his daughter, who served as president for Authentic Campaigns, a group that fundraises for Democratic political candidates.
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An appeals court has already ruled that Merchan can remain on the case, saying his daughter’s work does not represent a conflict of interest.
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Bragg has charged Trump with 34 counts of falsifying business records stemming from his 2016 payment of $130,000 to Daniels to cover up an alleged extramarital affair.
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On Monday, a second appeals court judge rejected Trump’s motion to delay the hush money trial while he seeks to have the venue changed to a courtroom outside of Manhattan.
Why it matters:If the case begins on April 15, Trump will become the first former president in U.S. history to be tried on criminal charges in a courtroom.
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Monday, April 8
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A New York appeals court judge rejects former President Donald Trump’s emergency request to delay the April 15 start of his hush money trial while he seeks to have it moved to a different state and have a new judge appointed. Trump also announces that he is suing Judge Juan Merchan as he attempts to have the gag order placed on him removed. Here are the latest legal developments involving the presumptive Republican presidential nominee for 2024.
New York hush money
Key players: New York Appeals Court Judge Justice Lizbeth González, Judge Juan Merchan, adult film star Stormy Daniels, former Playboy model Karen McDougal, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg
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González rejected Trump’s emergency request to delay the start of his hush money trial, the Associated Press reported.
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With just one week to go until the April 15 start date of the Manhattan trial on charges that Trump broke campaign finance and tax laws when he paid Daniels $130,000 in order to hide an extramarital affair from voters in the 2016 presidential election, Trump is also pursuing a number of new filings to keep the trial from going forward, CNN reported.
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Trump is seeking to move the trial brought by Bragg from the Democratic stronghold of Manhattan to Staten Island, has filed a lawsuit against Merchan and is appealing the gag order he issued to keep him from commenting on witnesses, court staff and their families.
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Daniels is expected to testify in the case about the sexual encounter she had with Trump, as is McDougal.
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The hush money case is set to be the first criminal trial Trump will face before the 2024 presidential election.
Why it matters: Trump is running out of time and options to delay the start of his hush money trial.