On May 9, 2024, former U.S. President Trump went on trial in Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City for allegedly covering up hush payments related to extramarital affairs.
Angela Weiss | Reuters
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Porn star Stormy Daniels resumed her testimony Thursday under cross-examination by Donald Trump’s lawyers, after her first court appearance drew an angry reaction from the former president.
Trump’s lawyers began questioning Daniels on Tuesday afternoon as they likely continue their efforts to undermine her credibility and cast doubt on her claims that she had a sexual relationship with Trump. The alleged one-night stand is a key component of a criminal hush-money trial in Manhattan Supreme Court.
Judge Juan Merchan warned Trump’s lawyers on Tuesday that the former president must stop swearing and shaking his head during Daniels’ testimony because he could intimidate her or influence the jury.
Stormi Daniels arrives at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 9, 2024 in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago | Michael M. SantiagoGetty Images
“I know your client was frustrated at this point, but he was cursing loudly and visually shaking his head, which was contemptuous,” Merchant said during a break in Daniels’ testimony.
“It had the potential to intimidate witnesses and the jury could see that,” Merchan said, according to court transcripts shared Tuesday night. “You need to talk to him. I’m not going to tolerate that.”
The judge issued the warning from the bench out of earshot of court reporters because he said he “didn’t want to embarrass Trump.”
When Daniels testified about an incident in which she had a sexual encounter with Trump shortly after meeting him at a celebrity golf tournament in Lake Tahoe in 2006, the former president erupted in anger.
Trump is accused of falsifying business records related to a $130,000 hush-money payment to Daniels. Prosecutors say the money was part of an illegal scheme to benefit Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.
Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen paid Daniels for keeping silent about the alleged sexual conduct less than two weeks before the election. Trump reimbursed Cohen after becoming president.
The hush-money case, while generally considered the least serious of the four criminal indictments facing Trump, is increasingly likely to be the only one to go to trial before the Nov. 5 presidential election.
A Georgia appeals court on Wednesday agreed to accept Trump’s request to disqualify District Attorney Fani Willis, potentially delaying a state-level election interference case against Trump.
On Tuesday night, federal Judge Erin Cannon indefinitely postponed Trump’s trial on charges that he illegally obtained classified documents and then tried to conceal them from authorities.
Meanwhile, the federal election interference case against Trump in Washington, D.C., is on hold as the Supreme Court considers whether Trump is immune from the charges because he was president when the alleged crimes occurred.
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