Justice Juan Merchan sided with prosecutors who alleged Trump had violated his gag order at least 9 times since the first criminal trial against a former U.S. president began earlier this month. New York state law allows fines up to $1,000 for each gag order violation. Merchan said a written order would be forthcoming.
The decision comes days after a hearing was held to determine whether Trump’s recent social media posts about certain witnesses in the case truly violated the order, including whetherTrump lawyer Todd Blanche argued last week that his client was responding to political attacks, adding there was “absolutely no willful violation of the gag order.”
“The Conflicted Judge’s friends and party members can say whatever they want about me, but I am not allowed to respond,” Trump posted to Truth Social last Tuesday. He alsojudges who presided over a civil fraud case against the Trump Organization, Justice Arthur Engoron, and who oversaw his defamation trial, Judge Lewis Kaplan.
Also last week, Trump also targeted his former attorney Michael Cohen, a key witness for the prosecution, calling him a “convicted liar” who got in trouble “because of things outside of what he did for me,” according to 6ABC Philadelphia.