Bragg insists most of Trump’s gag order should stay in place
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has requested that a judge maintain the majority of the restrictions from a gag order imposed on former President Donald Trump. This request was submitted following Trump’s trial, and although he argued for its removal claiming there was no longer any basis for it since the trial had concluded, the prosecutors proposed keeping some parts of the order. Specifically, while Trump could now discuss witnesses from the hush money case, the order would still prohibit him from speaking about prosecutors, court staff, and their families. The prosecutors have not suggested a specific end date for the gag order, but mentioned that lifting it before Trump’s sentencing on July 11 would be premature. Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with the gag order, particularly as it restricts him from discussing certain individuals like Matthew Colangelo, a prosecutor in the case and a former Biden administration official, whom Trump believes is inappropriately linked to political bias in his prosecution.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg asked a judge to keep in place most of the provisions of a gag order the judge imposed on former President Donald Trump in April, according to a court filing made public Friday.
Prosecutors said that while they agreed with Trump that witnesses in the hush money case should be fair game for Trump to speak about now that his trial is over, prosecutors, court staff, and their families should remain off-limits.
The prosecutors’ argument came in response to Trump asking Judge Juan Merchan to terminate the gag order immediately because the end of the trial meant there was “no longer any basis” for the order.
Prosecutors did not specify a proposed end date to the gag order, but they did suggest that it would be premature to terminate it before Trump is set to be sentenced on July 11.
“Defendant’s demand that this Court precipitously end these protections, even before the sentencing hearing on July 11, is overstated and largely unfounded,” prosecutors wrote.
Trump has been restricted from talking about key figures in the case who he previously raised concerns about prior to the gag order’s issuance.
They include one of Bragg’s leading prosecutors, Matthew Colangelo, a former senior official in the Biden administration’s Department of Justice. Trump has argued Colangelo is too closely tied to President Joe Biden, Trump’s lead opponent in the presidential race, and has also made claims without evidence that Biden used Colangelo to direct Bragg, an elected Democrat, to prosecute Trump.
The gag order also limits Trump from speaking about Merchan’s daughter Loren. Trump has argued in and out of court that Loren Merchan’s line of work at a firm that does marketing for national Democratic candidates presented a conflict of interest for the judge. Juan Merchan twice refused to recuse himself from the case when Trump’s attorneys requested it.
The gag order also limits Trump from talking about witnesses in the case, including Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels. Both have been vocal critics of Trump and have adopted public personalities that center on their experiences with Trump. Meanwhile, Trump has been unable to respond outside of court to their attacks.
Bragg agreeing with Trump that witnesses should be excised from the order could now invite Juan Merchan to permit Trump to speak about Cohen and Daniels, but it is unclear when Merchan will issue an order on the matter.
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The judge found during the trial that Trump violated the gag order and, at the time, fined Trump thousands of dollars and warned the former president his next violation would result in jail time.
Trump also challenged the constitutionality of the order, saying it was an unprecedented violation of the free speech rights of a presidential candidate. This week, New York’s highest court dismissed Trump’s challenge, saying the gag order presented no constitutional conflicts.
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