Trump Hush-Money Trial Update Day 6: Defense Raises Objections, Witness David Pecker Resumes Testimony

A disturbance in the overflow courtroom led to a man being escorted out in handcuffs during a trial. Despite warnings about violating rules, including recording and photography, two reporters have been barred from covering the trial. There has been no immediate comment from court officials.

Todd Blanche, representing Trump, contests proposed fines, asserting that Trump's actions were not willful violations of the gag order. Blanche highlights Trump's defense, stating that his responses are part of political discourse and a reaction to comments made by others, such as Cohen and Daniels. He argues against the disparity between Trump's restrictions and the freedom of others to comment freely.

In their opening statements, the prosecution and defense presented contrasting narratives to both the 12-person jury and the general public regarding the inaugural criminal trial of a former American president, marking the first of four Trump prosecutions to reach this stage.

Reflective of this historic moment, prosecutors endeavored to underscore the seriousness of the case, emphasizing its primary focus on election interference, particularly evident through hush money payments made to a porn actor who claimed to have had a sexual encounter with Trump.

Defense lawyer Todd Blanche tried to make the jury doubt the credibility of Michael Cohen, a witness for the prosecution. Cohen had previously admitted guilt in federal charges linked to the hush money scheme. Blanche suggested that Cohen's testimony might not be trustworthy because he's too fixated on Trump. Read More

Blanche detailed the procedure behind the ex-president's Truth Social venture. He clarified that individuals collaborating with Trump would curate articles they believe his supporters would find appealing and then share them under his name.

Blanche contended that reposting news articles, as seen in some of the contentious posts, does not breach the gag order.

When pressed by the judge for legal precedents supporting his argument, Blanche admitted he didn't have any but asserted that it's a matter of common sense.

Judge Merchan said that rather than seeking forgiveness, Trump ought to have sought clarification from the judge regarding posts or reposts that could potentially violate boundaries.

While the judge decides if what he said violate gag orders, the former president is strongly criticizing the judge and the rules that prevent him from speaking out.

The court is currently on a brief break.

Trump used the break to update his social media and wrote “HIGHLY CONFLICTED, TO PUT IT MILDLY, JUDGE JUAN MERCHAN, HAS TAKEN AWAY MY CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH. EVERYBODY IS ALLOWED TO TALK AND LIE ABOUT ME, BUT I AM NOT ALLOWED TO DEFEND MYSELF. THIS IS A KANGAROO COURT.”

Meanwhile, check out courtroom sketches from Trump's trial.

Judge Merchan returned to the courtroom 15 minutes later than expected. Witness David Pecker, the then-chairman of American Inc., who started his testimony on Monday is back on the witness stand today.

David Pecker testified that he has known Donald Trump since the late 1980s. Pecker explains that he had a great relationship with Trump over the years, starting with his idea of creating a magazine called Trump Style in 1989.

Pecker also had a lot of dealing and discussion with Trump as a celebrity in his own right, introducing him to other executives and people in New York. Pecker also mentioned that Trump was always kind enough to send him the content, ratings, and show information for "The Apprentice", which he published in the National Enquirer. Trump shared the ratings and show information with Pecker, who published it in the National Enquirer and other magazines. Pecker confirmed that he considered Trump a friend until 2017. Read More

An email from Michael Cohen is submitted by the Prosecutors as evidence.

On June 2, 2015, Cohen personally invited David Pecker to Donald Trump's campaign announcement event.

The email, in which Cohen asks Pecker to attend the event, reads "No one deserves to be there more than you".

"As a friend, I would love if you could make it. Let me know so I can save you a seat next to me on the atrium floor".

Pecker testified that during Trump's peak popularity with "The Apprentice" and "Celebrity Apprentice," the tabloid conducted a poll asking readers if Trump should run for president.

The poll he results overwhelmingly supported Trump's potential presidential candidacy. Trump even mentioned these poll results in an interview on the "Today Show" when discussing his thoughts about running for president.

Pecker had personal interactions with Trump and worked closely with Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen. In an August 2015 meeting with Trump, Cohen, and Hope Hicks at Trump Tower, Pecker explained that he could be Trump's 'eyes and ears' and publish positive stories about Trump and negative ones about his opponents. If he heard negative news or instances of women selling stories, he would notify Cohen. Pecker said stories could be purchased and "killed," meaning they would go unpublished.

Pecker met with the editor of the National Enquirer, Dylan Howard and emphasized the confidentiality of his agreement at Trump Tower. He requested the tabloid's bureau chiefs to verify Trump-related stories before alerting Cohen, aiming to keep the situation as private as possible.

Pecker emphasized the importance of keeping the agreement confidential to avoid revealing his intentions to anyone else.

Prosecuter Steinglass used pictures to explain more about the deal between Pecker, Trump, and Cohen.

He showed a picture of some good headlines from the National Enquirer about Trump, like "Donald Dominates!" and "World Exclusive: The Donald Trump Nobody Knows."

The National Enquirer relied on information from Ted Cruz, Ben Carson, and Marco Rubio to create headlines about former Trump primary opponent Ben Carson.

The court was shown examples of these headlines, including one stating "Bungling surgeon Ben Carson left sponge in patient's brain." Pecker sent drafts of these stories to Cohen, who provided feedback. Pecker did not recall whether Cohen shared these stories with Trump. Read More

The jurors and Pecker are taking a break while Trump's lawyers raise concerns with the judge about the questions Steinglass, the prosecutor, is asking Pecker regarding comments he claims were made to him by former high-ranking Trump campaign aide Steve Bannon.

David Pecker is back on the witness stand after already spending over an hour today answering questions. He's discussed various topics, particularly focusing on a crucial August 2015 meeting central to the "catch and kill" practice in the case. Pecker explained how he offered to notify Trump about "women selling stories" as part of an agreement he believed would benefit both of them.

Prosecutors also highlighted the close personal and professional bond between Donald Trump and Pecker, emphasizing how communication between Pecker and Michael Cohen increased following Trump's announcement of his candidacy.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass has presented a thumb drive to a court security officer, who will deliver it to David Pecker. This thumb drive contains various business records from AMI, the parent company of the National Enquirer, which will soon be presented as evidence in court.

Emil Bove, an attorney representing Trump, objected when prosecutor Joshua Steinglass began discussing how AMI maintained records and information, including text messages, with witness David Pecker.

The judge called the lawyers to the bench to address the objection, expressing a desire to avoid discussing objections in front of the jury. After the sidebar discussion, documents were admitted into evidence despite objections from Trump's team.

"Objection is noted and overruled," Judge Juan Merchan stated, indicating that any concerns about hearsay within the documents would be addressed as they were reviewed further.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is now questioning David Pecker about Dino Sajudin, a doorman selling a story about Donald Trump fathering a child.

Pecker called Michael Cohen, who confirmed the two names were on the payroll and asked Pecker to check the story. Cohen agreed to notify Pecker of any negative news in the marketplace. This is the first catch and kill deal that has occurred.

David Pecker testified that he instructed former National Enquirer editor in chief Dylan Howard to negotiate a price to purchase the story from the doorman alleging that Donald Trump had fathered a child. Howard negotiated the purchase for $30,000, which Pecker relayed to Michael Cohen.

When Cohen inquired about payment, Pecker agreed to buy the story, and Cohen responded, "The boss will be very pleased." When asked to clarify, Pecker confirmed that "the boss" referred to Donald Trump.

From the witness stand in a Manhattan courtroom, Pecker provided insights into the inner workings of the tabloid, including its practice of "catch and kill" operations.

"We engaged in checkbook journalism," Pecker admitted frankly, acknowledging that they paid for stories. This marks the first time Pecker has publicly discussed this secretive practice, where a publication buys the rights to a story with no intention of publishing it, particularly since it gained widespread attention during the 2016 presidential campaign.

The Wall Street Journal was among the first to report on this tactic in November 2016, just before the election, revealing that American Media Inc., the Enquirer's parent company, paid $150,000 to former Playboy model Karen McDougal for her story alleging an affair with Trump. While various news outlets extensively covered how Pecker protected Trump from damaging allegations by purchasing rights to such stories and never publishing them, Pecker himself had remained silent on the matter until now.

Dino Sajudin, a doorman who received $30,000 from the National Enquirer in 2015 for the rights to a rumor that Trump had fathered a child with an employee at Trump World Tower, was ordered to pay the story's exclusive rights to the doorman's silence.

Pecker testified that the story was "1,000% untrue" and that Sajudin submitted to a polygraph test to determine its legitimacy. The tabloid later concluded the story was not true, and Trump and the woman denied the allegations.

The jurors reviewed an internal email and invoice from the Enquirer detailing the payments made to Sajudin to suppress his story. One document specifies that the funds originated from the publication's "corporate" account. Additionally, an invoice prepared by an executive editor mentions an "immediate" bank transfer payment of $30,000 for a "Trump" story that was not published.

Pecker revealed that he advised Cohen to release Sajudin from the agreement, which initially prevented him from selling the story elsewhere. Pecker argued that since the story wasn't true, there should be no concerns. However, Cohen was hesitant to release Sajudin from the agreement, especially before the 2016 presidential election, according to Pecker. Eventually, the release occurred after Trump won the election.

Merchan dismissed the jury for the day, ending court proceedings early for the Passover holiday.

Proceedings are scheduled to resume on Thursday, there will be no trial on Wednesday