Stormy Daniels Passing Out During Sex Is 'Gift' to Donald Trump Defense

Stormy Daniels' admission that she passed out during sex with Donald Trump is a "gift" for his legal team, a legal expert has told Newsweek.

Stephen Gillers, a law professor at New York University School of Law, was reacting to Daniels' testimony on Tuesday. The adult film star told Trump's hush-money trial that she passed out while she and the former president were having sex after a charity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, in 2006. "Her mention of passing out is a gift that will now enable the lawyers to challenge her memory," Gillers said.

Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is the first former president in United States history to stand trial in a criminal case. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records. He has continually said that this case and other criminal and civil matters involving him are politically motivated. Newsweek sought email comment from Trump's attorney on Wednesday.

The prosecution seeks to prove that, before the 2016 presidential election, Trump paid, or discussed paying, two women—Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal—not to disclose his alleged affairs with them. The former president denies affairs with either woman.

Daniels told the court that she didn't take any drugs or drink, but she still "blacked out" in Trump's room. She told the jury she woke up on the bed and wasn't wearing any clothes. Daniels said that she and Trump then had sex in the "missionary position".

Judge Juan Merchan expressed surprise that Trump's lawyers didn't object more to the graphic nature of Daniels' evidence.

Gillers said that allowing Daniels to keep talking may have been a tactic by the Republican's team. "By not objecting, Trump's lawyers waive any objection they might have had to the testimony and they know it.

"More likely, they wanted her to get into details that would be inconsistent with her prior descriptions of the incident, and they can then call her a fantasist or at least challenge her memory," Gillers added.

David Ring, a Los Angeles-based civil trial lawyer, told Newsweek that he found Daniels' admission "strange" but said he didn't think it would damage her credibility.

"She said she briefly 'blacked out' during the sexual encounter. That seems a bit strange, but I don't think she loses any credibility with the jury with that comment. It was just a snippet of testimony," Ring added.

The Trump trial doesn't sit on Wednesdays, and Daniels will continue with cross-examination evidence on Thursday.