Trump accuses: Silence paying porn stars, models and doormen

NEXT LEGAL STEPS

Trump pleaded not guilty in a courtroom packed with 34 counts, which one of his lawyers, Todd Blanche, dismissed after the hearing as a “summary”.

“We’re going to fight it, we’re going to fight it out,” Blanche said.

The judge gave Trump’s lawyers until August 8 to file petitions in the case with an initial hearing date of January 2024.

Bennett Gershman, a law professor at Pace University, said Trump was essentially accused of orchestrating a “grand scheme to undermine the democratic process”.

“In other words, by covering up his sexual misconduct through numerous false profiles… he succeeded in concealing truthful information that if made public would be damaging. seriously jeopardize his presidential quest.”

Ellen Yaroshefsky, a law professor at Hofstra University, said prosecutors could face “somewhat difficult to prove that the forged business records were intended to influence the election”.

One potential roadblock for prosecutors could be Cohen, a former Trump attorney, whose witness credibility is certain to come under attack since he is now a convicted felon.

There is also a precedent of sorts.

John Edwards, who twice sought the Democratic presidential nomination, was put on trial in 2012, charged with campaign finance violations for paying to silence mistresses.

The jury reached an impasse and the Justice Department decided not to rehear the case.

OTHER LEGAL ISSUES

Trump is facing legal scrutiny beyond the Big Apple.

A special counsel is looking into his role in the January 6, 2021 attack on Congress by his supporters.

Special counsel Jack Smith is also investigating a trove of classified documents withheld by Trump after he left office.

The documents were recovered during an FBI raid on Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida in August 2022.

A district attorney in Georgia is also investigating Trump’s attempt to overturn the presidential election results in the southern state.