Ex-President Donald Trump wants a different judge for his hush-money trial, even though it’s about to start. He’s unhappy with the current judge and is trying a last-minute move to cause problems and make the trial take longer.
Trump’s lawyers recently told Judge Juan M. in Manhattan that they agree with Trump’s complaints on social media. Merchan is stepping off the case because he thinks he might be treated unfairly because his daughter works for the Democratic party. The judge said no to a request that was the same last August.
Trumpâs appeal is pending before the District of Columbia Circuit. Therefore, the lawyers are asking for the judge to recuse herself from the case. Merchan is making money and improving their reputation because this case is getting in the way of Trump’s campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.
The court case will start on April 15th. This is the first of four cases against Trump that will go to trial. It would also be the first time a former president has a trial for a crime.
Merchan didn’t make a decision right away. He can make the decision by himself. If he leaves, the trial schedule will be messed up and Trump will get a delay he has wanted while a new judge gets familiar with the case.
We left messages asking for a comment from a court spokesperson and from Merchan’s daughter, Loren Merchan. The Manhattan district attorney’s office said there is no need for Merchan to step aside.
The lawyer for Loren Merchan says that her business is not benefiting from her father’s choices, but the prosecutor doesn’t agree. He wrote a letter to the judge saying that there isn’t enough evidence to prove this.
“This series of hints is far from proving that Judge Merchan has a personal or financial interest in reaching a specific conclusion,” according to Colangelo.
Loren Merchan is the boss of Authentic Campaigns and has gotten at least $70 million from Democratic candidates and causes since starting the company in 2018.
The company has worked with important people like President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and a big political group connected to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. According to campaign finance disclosures, Senate Majority PAC has given $15. 2 million to Authentic Campaigns.
On Friday, Merchan stopped Trump’s lawyers from making NBC give them documents about a documentary on Stormy Daniels, a important witness in the case. He decided that the defense’s request for information was too broad and not necessary for them to have.
On Wednesday, Merchan said no to the Republican nominee’s request to wait for the Supreme Court’s decision before starting the trial. This decision was related to the claims of presidential immunity in a different case. The judge has not decided yet on the defense’s request for a delay. They say they won’t get a fair trial because the media has said bad things about them.
The hush money case is about claims that Trump lied about his company’s records to hide payments to his former lawyer, who helped Trump keep bad news quiet during his 2016 campaign. Cohen gave Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet about her relationship with Trump.
Last year, Trump said he did not do the 34 bad things he was accused of, of lying about his business records. He said he didn’t have sex with Daniels. His lawyers say that the money given to Cohen was used for legal expenses that were allowed by law.
Trump hinted that his lawyers will try again to get the judge to leave the case by making critical posts about the judge and his daughter on his Truth Social platform.
Trump said, without proof, that Merchan’s decisions, like putting a limit on what Trump can say in public, were influenced by his daughter’s job. He falsely said that she had posted a picture on social media showing him in jail. Trump’s criticism of Lauren Merchan caused the judge to make a rule that he can’t talk about his family in public.
“The judge needs to step down now and correct the mistake of not doing so last year,” Trump wrote on March 27th. “If the unfair and conflicted judge is allowed to continue with this fake ‘case,’ it will be another unfortunate example of our country becoming like a corrupt, unstable government, not the America we once knew and loved. ”
Trump also asked the judge in his election interference case in Washington, DC, to step down because he thought her past comments about him might make her unfair. But Judge Tanya Chutkan said she doesn’t need to leave her position.
Last year, the defence requested that Merchan should not be involved in the case because his daughter was closely involved. They also took some small donations that the judge gave to Democratic causes during the 2020 campaign. They added up to $35 in total, with $15 going to Biden.
Merchan said no to the request. He said that a legal group found that his work did not affect how fair he is. He wrote this in August. The judge said he was sure he could be fair and impartial. He also said that Trump’s lawyers did not show any good reasons for him to step down from the case.
Trump’s lawyers say things are different now because Trump is running against President Joe Biden again. Democrats, including clients of Loren Merchan’s firm, are trying to raise money by talking about Trump’s legal problems in emails about the hush-money case.
“Most New Yorkers would not be okay with the judge in charge of this case having a grown-up child who works at WinRed or MAGA Inc. ,” Blanche and Necheles said. They were talking about a platform that raises money for Republicans and a committee that raises money for Trump.
Simple words: The text is about.
Date:
Trump asks for different judge prior to his hush-money criminal trial
