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Donald Trump Trial Updates: Stormy Daniels' Attorney Says Deal Wasn't 'Hush Money'

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Donald Trump Trial Updates: Stormy Daniels' Attorney Says Deal Wasn't 'Hush Money'

The judge held a gag order hearing and witness testimony continued Thursday in former President Donald Trump's hush money trial. Live updates have ended.

Trump: I don't fall asleep, "I simply close my beautiful blue eyes"

Trump addressed reports of him "sleeping" in court, saying sometimes he simply closes his "beautiful blue eyes."

"Contrary to the FAKE NEWS MEDIA, I don't fall asleep during the Crooked D.A.'s Witch Hunt, especially not today," Trump posted on Truth Social this afternoon. "I simply close my beautiful blue eyes, sometimes, listen intensely, and take it ALL in!!!"

As the former president stepped out of the courtroom this afternoon, he spoke to the media for about three minutes. One reporter asked Trump about Keith Davidson's testimony, Trump said he could not answer due to the gag order.

Trump again said he should be on the campaign trail instead of sitting in court, but that polls are "good." When asked if he would debate RFK Jr., he answered, "I don't know anything about him."

Court adjourns

Court is adjourned.

Today we heard from two witnesses: Keith Davidson, former attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, completed his testimony. Douglas Daus, a forensic analyst for the New York County district attorney's office, also took the stand late Thursday.

A hearing was held earlier today on four additional alleged gag order violations. Judge Merchan has not yet issued a ruling.

A scheduling note, court will end earlier tomorrow at 3:45 p.m.

Witness: Cohen had 39,745 contacts on one phone

Prosecutors call their next witness, Douglas Daus, a forensic analyst for the New York County district attorney's office.

Daus was in charge of extracting data from two of Michael Cohen's phones. He is testifying as a custodian of records. He says on one of the phones, Cohen had an "unusual" 39,745 contacts.

The DA's office plays an audio clip from one of Cohen's phones. Among rustling, Trump is heard saying, "It's so false what they're saying, it's such bulls***."

Later, Cohen is heard telling Trump, "I need to open up a company for the transfer about our friend David."

Trump attorney Emil Bove is now cross-examining Daus.

Daus agrees that the feds analyzed the phones in 2018 as Bove attacks the chain of custody of evidence upon cross-examination.

Court hears call between Davidson, Cohen

The court hears a recording of a call between Davidson and Cohen. Cohen is heard complaining that "Nobody's thinking about Michael."

"Who else would do that for somebody? Who else? I did. Because I cared about the guy," Cohen says to Davidson on the call. "I'm sitting there and I'm thinking to myself, 'What about me?'"

In the recording, Cohen asks Davidson what he would do if he were him, questioning if he should break away from the "Trump doctrine" or "go rogue."

In a different recording, Davidson is heard telling Cohen that sometimes people get "settler's remorse" because they rush to settle before a date, worried that they won't have anymore "leverage" if they wait.

He is also heard saying that "Avenatti has driven a wedge, a serious wedge, in between Stormy and Gina. Avenatti is leaning on Gina saying, you know, basically, we know we're lying, we know we're full of sh** in the media."

This concludes Davidson's testimony.

Keith Davidson continues testimony

Keith Davidson confirms that he continued to communicate with Cohen after the Daniels deal. When asked if Cohen sent him business, Davidson responds, "He sent me work. He sent me a client. He sent me a non-paying client." This earns chuckles from the courtroom.

Davidson said there were several calls with Cohen where he thought he was being recorded because of the structured nature of these calls. "Ordinarily, he was all over the place," he tells the court.

After hearing more audio, Davidson confirms that he told Cohen if Trump loses the 2016 election, and he thought Trump would, "we lose all f***ing leverage and this case is worth zero."

The defense has now finished its cross-examiniation. The DA's office asks for 5 minutes to gather an exhibit before redirect.

During the break, Trump is seen chatting with adviser Boris Epshteyn.

Quick recap

Keith Davidson is back on the stand and the defense is continuing its cross-examination.

Trump attorney Emil Bove said he would make some adjustments to his questioning during the lunch break and believes he has less than an hour left.

Here's a quick recap of the day so far:

Gag order hearing: Judge Juan Merchan held a hearing this morning on four more alleged gag order violations against Trump. Merchan appeared poised to dismiss at least one of the alleged violations, when Trump called witness David Pecker "very nice." He did not immediately issue a ruling.

Witness testimony: Keith Davidson, former attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, has been testifying all day. He explained that he would "never" call the payment made to Daniels "hush money," rather calling the deal "consideration." During cross-examination, there was a testy exchange between Davidson and Trump attorney Emil Bove as Davidson repeatedly answered he did not "recall" to several questions.

Judge says he will not review Trump's posts ahead of time

Court is back.

Trump is seen pointing at various stacks of paper as his attorney Susan Necheles asks to introduce a series of news articles that the former president wants to post online. The defense wants to ensure the content doesn't violate the gag order as they believe there is "ambiguity." Merchan says he's not going to look at Trump's posts in advance.

"There is no ambiguity in the order," the judge says. "If there's doubt, steer clear."

Lunch

Court is taking a lunch break.

Exchange between Bove and Davidson turns testy

Keith Davidson has answered "I don't recall" to several questions and Trump attorney Emil Bove seems frustrated. Bove has raised his voice a couple of times and at one point asks the witness, "it's your testimony that you don't even know what I'm talking about?"

"Is it fair to say your memory seems a little fuzzy around these periods?" Bove asks. "I've had 1,500 clients," Davidson snaps back.

Bove tells the Davidson, "I'm not here to play lawyer games with you," adding that he's just looking for "truthful answers."

"You're getting truthful answers, sir," Davidson barks back.

Photos: Inside the courthouse

1 of 4

Andrew Giuliani, the son of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, was seen inside the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse this morning as the trial began.

Defense cross-examines Davidson

Keith Davidson is back on the stand after a short break and the defense is now up for cross-examination. Trump attorney Emil Bove begins by asking Davidson if he has ever met Trump, he answers, "never."

"What does the word extortion mean to you?" Bove asks. "Extortion is the obtaining of property by fear or force," Davidson answers. Bove adds "coercion," Davidson agrees.

Bove asks Davidson if he believes the statute of limitations on any extortion by him in this case have expired. Davidson says he hasn't thought about it. "You're a lawyer and you haven't thought of that, prior to your testimony?" Bove asks. "I have not," Davidson responds.

Stormy Daniels' attorney: The deal "wasn't hush money"

Stormy Daniels is later contacted by the Wall Street Journal for comment on a story about her involvement with Trump and the hush money payment, her attorney Keith Davidson testifies. Davidson informs Cohen, who instructs him to "write a strong denial comment for her like you did before."

When confronted with the statement he wrote for Daniels, Davidson said it was "technically true." He said that no one had alleged that the encounter between his client and Trump was "romantic."

Davidson was then asked if he would use the term "hush money" to describe the payment to Daniels. Davidson responds, "I would never use that word."

It wasn't a payoff and it wasn't hush money, Davidson testifies, instead calling the deal "consideration," which is a legal term.

Prosecutors show another denial statement that was prepared for Daniels, in which she said, "I am denying this affair because it never happened." Davidson insists it's still "technically true."

"I don't think anyone had ever alleged there was a relationship between Stormy Daniels and Donald Trump," Davidson testifies. "I believe a relationship is an ongoing interaction."

This concludes the prosecution's direct examination of Davidson.

Why did Trump and Daniels use fake names in their NDA?

Legal commentators are questioning why Donald Trump would use a pseudonym in his non-disclosure agreement with adult film star Stormy Daniels.

Evidence in the hush money trial shows both Trump and Daniels used fake names when signing the legal paperwork. They were only identified in a side agreement, which was for the eyes of lawyers only.

Daniels' attorney, Keith Davidson, previously gave evidence that he drafted the agreement. In it, Daniels is identified as Peggy Peterson and Trump is identified as David Dennison.

"It is unusual for a non-disclosure agreement to use pseudonyms as the agreement itself would be subject to the confidentiality clauses within it," New York attorney Colleen Kerwick told Newsweek.

Read more from Newsweek's Sean O'Driscoll here.

Keith Davidson resumes testimony

The jury is now in the courtroom and Keith Davidson is back on the stand. Davidson was an attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

Davidson recalls receiving a call from Michael Cohen in mid-December, while he was doing some holiday shopping in a "strangely decorated" department store.

"He said something to the effect of, 'Jesus Christ, can you f***ing believe I'm not going to Washington? After everything I've done for that f***ing guy, I can't believe I'm not going to Washington. I've saved that guy's ass so many times you don't even know," Davidson said.

Cohen also complained that Trump was not paying him back for the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, Davidson testified.

Judge: Not "terribly concerned" about David Pecker comment

Judge Merchan interrupts Trump attorney Todd Blanche, saying he's "not terribly concerned" about the alleged violation regarding witness David Pecker. Trump called Pecker "very nice" during a campaign stop last week.

The defense is now pointing to Michael Cohen's repeated and consistent attacks against Trump on his X account, TikTok and podcast. Blanche argues, "this [Cohen] is not a man that needs protection from the gag order."

Next, Merchan asks Blanche to address Trump's post about the jury. Blanche explains that the defense believes this is a political trial, and that includes the trial's location. Merchan interrupts to ask, "Did he violate the gag order? That's all I want to know."

"Absolutely no," Blanche responds.

The hearing is now over. There will be a 5 minute break before the jury is called.

Gag order hearing begins

Court is in session and beginning with the gag order hearing. Prosecutors argue the order was issued because of Trump's "persistent and escalating" rhetoric.

Trump seated between attorneys
Former President Donald Trump attends his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City, on May 2, 2024. MARK PETERSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

What are the four alleged violations? Last week, the prosecution presented four alleged violations of the gag order. They include: Trump's comments about the jury being picked so quickly, Trump calling witness David Pecker "very nice," and Trump's comments about expected witness Michael Cohen, including calling him a "convicted liar" with no credibility during an interview.

The prosecution argues that these comments are "corrosive" to the procedure and the "fair administration of justice."

Defense now addresses court: Trump attorney Todd Blanche argues that the former president is running a campaign, and political attacks and response to political attacks don't violate the gag order. The defense provided 500 pages of exhibits this morning.

Blanche complains about Biden's recent "stormy weather" snub. The judge says that while Trump can't talk about Stormy Daniels, he is "certainly allowed to respond" to Biden. Blanche says that's not his point, argues Trump is "limited in what he can say, President Biden is not."

"He can't just say no comment," Blanche says, "he's running for president."

The judge says the media interest "is not a surprise to anyone." He also points out that Trump has repeatedly addressed the press on his own, "it wasn't the press that went up to him."

Trump calls for removal of "unconstitutional" gag order

Former President Donald Trump is now in the courtroom where a gag order hearing is expected to begin shortly. Earlier this morning, Trump again called for the "unconstitutional" order to be removed.

"We cannot let this radical left, corrupt and highly conflicted New York Democrat judge interfere with the presidential election of 2024," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. "The USA is truly a nation in decline! Remove the unconstitutional gag order."

Michael Cohen is a "mess" for prosecutors

Michael Cohen, the star witness in the hush money trial, is becoming an issue for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office.

The prosecution is not only struggling to control Cohen from speaking out about the case, but troubling testimony from various witnesses has given the jury a less-than-rosy depiction of Trump's former fixer.

Two former federal prosecutors have also said that Cohen may be placed under a gag order for his negative comments about Trump.

"Michael Cohen is a complete mess as a witness for the prosecution in the current state fraud trial," former federal prosecutor Michael McAuliffe told Newsweek.

Why does this matter? Cohen made the $130,000 hush money payment to Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, the payment at the center of the case.

Read more from Newsweek's Katherine Fung here.

Michael Cohen social media posts Trump
Michael Cohen arrives at former President Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial in New York City on October 24, 2023. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Soon: Judge to hold gag order hearing

Good morning, it's 9 a.m. in New York City and former President Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial is set to resume in about 30 minutes.

Here's what's happening today: A hearing on gag order violations is scheduled for 9:30 a.m., Keith Davidson is then expected to continue his testimony. Davidson was an attorney for adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

Gag order hearing: Judge Juan Merchan is expected to consider four additional alleged gag order violations against Trump when court begins this morning. Prosecutors are again asking for the maximum fine of $1,000 per violation.

These are in addition to 10 others prosecutors previously presented. Nine of those were found to be in violation of the gag order; Trump was fined a total of $9,000 and was ordered to remove the posts from his Truth Social page and campaign website.

Who testified Tuesday? Four witnesses took the stand on Tuesday, the last day court was held. They included:

  • Gary Farro, Michael Cohen's former banker
  • Dr. Robert Browning, executive director of C-SPAN archives
  • Phillip Thompson, from court reporting company Esquire Deposition Solutions
  • Keith Davidson, Daniels' and McDougal's former attorney. He testified for several hours and will continue today.

Get caught up: Here are updates from Tuesday.

Newsweek senior reporter Katherine Fung is inside the courtroom.

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