Donald Trump is at risk of being jailed over allegations he has repeatedly violated the gag order imposed on him during his hush money trial, a legal expert said.
Andrew Weissmann, an attorney and former FBI general counsel, was reacting to prosecutors in the falsifying business records trial urging that Trump be held in contempt for repeatedly violating the gag order imposed by Judge Juan Merchan, which aim to stop the former president from publicly speaking about potential witnesses or members of the jury in the historic proceedings.
Merchan has scheduled a hearing next week over claims that Trump's social media posts linking to articles that attacked his former lawyer Michael Cohen or claimed that "undercover liberal activists" are lying to the judge to get on the jury were a violation of the gag order.
Speaking to MSNBC, Weissmann suggested that the threat of "jail time" could be the only thing to stop Trump breaching his gag order, noting that Trump was previously fined a total of $15,000 for twice violating a gag order imposed on him by Judge Arthur Engoron during his civil fraud case.
"He's already had not only one, but two bites of the apple," Weissmann said. "He's been given these warnings. "So I do think that when you get to particularly jurors and pernicious effectiveness, that the prospect of some form of jail time, even if it's a timeout in a holding cell, is something that is going to need to happen."
Weissmann added that threatening Trump with time in jail must only happen once the former president's lawyers have been "given an opportunity to present any explanation as to what's going on."
Emil Bove, one of Trump's lawyers, argued in the New York court on Thursday that the social media posts Trump shared didn't "establish any willful violations" of the gag order, and that reposting other people's opinions do not constitute a violation.
Trump's legal team has been contacted for further comment via email.
Elsewhere, Weissmann suggested that any "red line" for a judge with regards to handing down stricter punishments for violating gag orders would be in response to fears for jurors' safety.
"The road to hell in this country is going to be thinking that you should not apply the exact same rules to Donald Trump as you would to any other defendant," Weissmann told MSNBC. "It may be something he is goading the judge to do, maybe something for political reasons that he wants to have happen. That is irrelevant. All eyes are really on Judge Merchan because it's going to set the tone for how this trial goes and it's clear that Donald Trump is testing that right now."
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to "hush money" he arranged for his former lawyer Michael Cohen to pay adult film star Stormy Daniels to keep an alleged affair she had with Trump a secret in the run-up to the 2016 election.
The money was listed in Trump's company records as "legal fees," which prosecutors suggest was part of an unlawful attempt to influence the outcome of the 2016 presidential race. Trump admits reimbursing the $130,000 hush money to Cohen, but denies having an affair with Daniels.
A full jury of 12 people has been seated in the criminal case, with just five more alternate jurors needed to be selected.
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About the writer
Ewan Palmer is a Newsweek News Reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on US politics, domestic policy ... Read more
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