The New York judge overseeing the criminal case against Donald Trump over hush-money payments to a porn star urged the parties to refrain from making public statements that could incite violence or unrest.
(Bloomberg) — The New York judge overseeing the criminal case against Donald Trump over hush-money payments to a porn star urged the parties to refrain from making public statements that could incite violence or unrest.
Trump, the first former US president to be indicted, on Tuesday pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal counts in the Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against him. The city’s police department, the US Secret Service and other authorities remain on high alert given the political firestorm over the case.
Prosecutors raised Trump’s past incendiary rhetoric in seeking a court order that would prevent him from posting documents from the case on social media. Judge Juan Manuel Merchan didn’t issue a ruling on the protective order request. But he told the lawyers to tell their clients to “please refrain from making statements that are likely to incite violence or civil unrest.”
Read more: Trump Pleads Not Guilty to 34 Counts Brought by Manhattan DA
During the arraignment, prosecutors told the judge of their deep concern about Trump’s behavior, including his recent posting of a photograph of himself holding a baseball bat next to an image of Bragg. Trump had also warned of “death & destruction” if he were charged and issued a call to action: “PROTEST, TAKE OUR NATION BACK!”
Prosecutors said Trump’s “irresponsible social media posts” were a threat to the city as well as potential government witnesses and the families of people involved in the case. In one post after the indictment last week the former president called Bragg’s wife “anti-Trump.”
Defense attorneys fired back on Tuesday, saying Trump’s remarks were the result of him being “frustrated, upset” by Bragg’s case and what he described as leaks about the charges and unfair commentary by the government’s star witness, former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen. The attorneys said it would be “patently unfair” to not allow their client to speak about his case.
After giving his warning to both sides, the judge said he didn’t have any immediate intention to silence Trump through a so-called gag order, which the judge described as “the most serious and least tolerable infringement on the First Amendment.”
Trump ‘Committed’
The judge said that was especially true for someone running for the presidency.
Even so, Trump attorney Joe Tacopina told reporters that Trump won’t post on social media about the case. He said “he’s committed” to that.
Toward the end of Tuesday’s hearing, the judge gave Trump what he described as a standard set of warnings to ensure proper behavior by defendants in court. He advised the former president against becoming disruptive in any way, saying “I do have authority to remove you from the courtroom.” The judge asked Trump if he understood.
“I do,” Trump said.
The judge said he also had a right to conduct a trial and impose a sentence without Trump present, if circumstances warranted. He asked the former president again if he understood.
“Yes,” Trump said.
(Updates with additional remarks by the judge.)
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