District attorney accuses Trump of trying to delay hush money trial over publicity | Wilnesh News

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is urging a judge to deny Donald Trump’s last-minute request to delay his upcoming criminal hush money trial due to biased media reporting.

Bragg said in a statement that he accused Trump of falsifying business records in a scheme to hide payments to porn star Stormy Daniels. court filing The former president himself was responsible for the frenzied media reporting, he said Wednesday.

Bragg told New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchant that Trump’s “own ongoing rhetoric is causing widespread concern, and it would be counterintuitive to reward him for recess based on the media attention he actively seeks.”

Bragg wrote that Trump “simply cannot have it both ways: complain about the prejudicial effects of pretrial publicity while simultaneously seeking to taint the jury pool by making baseless and inflammatory accusations about this trial, specific witnesses, individual prosecutors, and the court itself.” .”

The district attorney wrote that Republican presidential candidate Trump is also wrong in claiming that the massive publicity means he cannot get a fair jury.

Bragg added that an “indefinite adjournment” was also unjustified because media attention on the case was unlikely to subside.

Trump last month asked for a “significant” delay in the trial – which is scheduled to begin with jury selection on April 15 – until the buzz surrounding the trial “died”.

Bragg noted in Wednesday’s filing that the request marks Trump’s eighth attempt to delay the start of the trial.

The district attorney argued that Trump failed to prove that media coverage of the case was biased against him or that the jury pool was tainted.

Bragg wrote that because of the potential for increased publicity, the solution “is to hold the trial as early as possible.”

Trump’s lawyers argued that the pool of potential jurors has been subjected to “substantial biased and unfair media coverage” and that many of them “already mistakenly believe President Trump is guilty.”

After their request for a delay, Murchin issued a gag order barring Trump from publicly commenting on potential witnesses and jurors and from making certain statements about other figures involved in the case and their families.

Trump responded at length on social media to the judge and the case, while also taking aim at the judge’s adult daughter’s work at a Democratic political firm. At least one of Trump’s posts on Truth Social included his daughter’s full name and photo.

Bragg on Monday urged Merchin to extend the gag order, calling Trump’s comments “dangerous, violent and reprehensible.”

Merchin did so Monday night, explicitly prohibiting Trump from attacking court family members and district attorneys.

“The average observer must now conclude after hearing the defendants’ recent attacks that if they participate in these proceedings, even tangentially, they should not only worry about themselves, but But also for the people they love,” Merchant wrote in sequence.

“Such concerns undoubtedly interfere with the administration of justice and constitute a direct attack on the rule of law itself.”

Trump’s lawyers are now again trying to get a judge to throw out the case, citing work his daughter did for a “real campaign” whose clients include Trump’s Democratic rival, President Joe Biden.

Merchant, who has rejected previous attempts to recuse herself, also believes her daughter’s political career has caused prejudice.