Former US President Donald Trump sits in court at Manhattan criminal court at the New York State Supreme Court in New York, New York, Monday, May, 6, 2024.
© Brendan McDermid/Pool via USA TODAY NETWORK
(New York, NY) – The judge in former President Trump’s non disclosure agreement trial — also know as the hush money trial — is yet again holding Trump in contempt of court. It marks the 10th time that Judge Juan Merchan has held Trump in contempt — and he’s threatening to put Trump in jail if the former president does not comply with a restrictive gag order.
Trump referenced the gag order in addressing reporters outside court, noting he can’t say much as a result. Merchan has donated to President Biden in the past and his daughter is a known Democratic strategist — prompting Trump to suggest the judge is unfairly biased or compromised. But Merchan has refused calls to recuse himself and instead slapped a gag order on Trump, barring him from speaking about any witnesses in the case or their credibility for example.
Manhattan prosecutors claim Trump ordered payments be made to an adult film actress ahead of the 2016 election to cover up an alleged affair. They say it was part of an attempt to trick voters and hide from them a potentially salacious affair. In testimony last week, Trump’s former press secretary Hope Hicks said he was worried about how his wife Melania would react to reports of an alleged affair. The former president has been fined thousands of dollars in connection to the gag order from Judge Merchan.
