Donald Trump has been found guilty of contempt of court for violating the trial’s gag order and fined $9,000.
Judge Juan Merchán also warned the former president that he could face jail if he does it again in a stern warning as the third week of the case begins, and called some of his own arguments in defense of his online attacks “absurd.”
And in a clear warning in his ruling, the judge highlighted the challenge of relying on financial sanctions against a defendant who “can easily afford” to pay the fine. In the case of billionaire Trump, he raised the possibility of ‘whether in some cases jail may be a necessary punishment.’
There was good news for the 77-year-old, as Judge Merchan ruled that he would be able to attend Barron’s high school graduation next month.
Trump was fined $1,000 each by a series of social media posts directed at witness Michael Cohen and questioning the jury’s bias.
Donald Trump has been found guilty of contempt of court for violating the trial’s gag order and fined $9,000.
The judge also asked Trump to remove the offensive posts, which included calling potential witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels “sleazy balls.”
The decision comes after a controversial court hearing in which Trump’s lawyer argued that none of the posts or statements violated the gag order and cited arguments based on the First Amendment.
The judge acknowledged those sensitivities and said he was “well aware of and protective of the defendant’s First Amendment rights, particularly given his candidacy for the office of President of the United States.”
He said that these rights should not be restricted, being able to “campaign fully for the position he seeks and be able to respond and defend himself against political attacks.” But he called the gag order “narrowly tailored to prevent risks.”
Sweetener: Even when Judge Mercan found Trump in contempt, he ruled that he could attend his son Barron’s graduation in May.
Judge Merchan found Trump in contempt and fined him $9,000 for violating a “gag” order he imposed
Trump faces not only fines, but also possible jail time if more violations are discovered
The judge did not accept Trump’s argument that he was simply republishing other people’s opinions that attacked potential witnesses.
And he threatened to impose a “prison sentence” if Trump continued.
It was the latest development in the Stormy Daniels ‘hush’ money trial that has brought a series of revelations, including which celebrities, power brokers and golf professionals had their numbers recorded by Trump’s longtime aide.
Trump criticized the judge again on the way to court, again complaining that he did not recuse himself from the case.
That was a veiled reference to Judge Merchan’s daughter, whose work for a digital defense firm with prominent Democratic clients is the basis for some of Trump’s attacks.
Judge Merchan updated his gag order to prohibit attacks on family members.
“It’s called abuse of recusal,” Trump said Tuesday in Manhattan Criminal Court. “The judge should end the case because he has no case,” he said.
Judge Merchan criticized Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, during a hearing in which prosecutors alleged violations of the gag, one by one.
Blanche tried to present arguments before her client’s eyes, but sometimes the judge was not convinced.
“Mr. Blanche, I have to tell you right now, you are losing all credibility,” Merchan said. He is losing all credibility in court. Is there any other argument you want to make? he said at one point.
In his decision, the judge was not swayed by Trump’s arguments that his violations were not “deliberate” or that he reposted others’ material.
‘This Court’s Extended Order is legal and unequivocal. “The defendant violated the order by making social media posts about known witnesses related to his participation in this criminal proceeding and by making public statements about jurors in this criminal proceeding,” he wrote.
The judge found that Trump “selected” the posts and published them to maximize their reach. He used some of Trump’s own boasts against him.
“When I make a statement, it SPREADS everywhere, fast and furious. EVERYONE SEEMS TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I HAVE TO SAY, AND QUICKLY… If it didn’t work, or I didn’t get the word out properly, “I wouldn’t use it, but it works and it works very well,” Trump said.
“It is counterintuitive and, indeed, absurd to read the Expanded Order so as not to prohibit statements that Defendant intentionally selected and published to maximize exposure,” he wrote.
He also criticized Trump for the way he altered a quote from Fox News host Jesse Watters and said liberal activists were “lying” to get on the jury.
‘This is not a new publication but rather the defendant’s own words. Mr. Watters delivered a statement that the defendant altered, placed in quotation marks, attributed to Mr. Watters, and published. The goal is to call into question the legitimacy of the jury selection process in this case. This constitutes a clear violation of the Expanded Order and requires no further analysis.’
The order prevents Trump from ‘making or directing others to make public statements about known or reasonably foreseeable witnesses regarding their possible participation in the investigation or this criminal proceeding, and ‘public statements about any potential juror or any juror.’ .
The judge warned that financial sanctions might not have the desired effect on a wealthy defendant: returning him to the threat of jail.
“While $1,000 may be sufficient in most cases to protect the dignity of the judicial system, enforce its mandates, and punish the offender for disobeying a court order, unfortunately it will not achieve the desired result in those cases where the conviction can easily afford such a fine. In those circumstances, it would be preferable if the Court could impose a fine more proportionate to the wealth of the contemnor. In some cases it could be a fine of $2,500, in other cases it could be a fine of $150,000. Court is not vested with such discretion, it must consider whether in some cases prison may be a necessary punishment.’
