US: Trump’s Hush Money trial postponed for 30 days
Donald Trump’s ‘hush money’ case: Judge postponed trial for 30 days after new evidence was turned over to parties.
Washington, DC: In the latest development in former US President Donald Trump’s ‘hush money’ case, the judge has postponed the trial for 30 days after new evidence was turned over to the parties. Jury selection originally scheduled to begin on March 25, which would have been Trump’s first criminal trial, was postponed by Judge Juan Merchan after prosecutors agreed to the one-month delay, the Hill reported.
Notably, the decision came after parties turned to the judge and told him that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York had turned over more than 70,000 pages of documents, some of which are related to Donal Trump’s case.
What did the judge say?
Judge Merchan adjourned the trial for 30 days and stated that a hearing on the case will take place on March 25 to discuss the new trial dates and new documents, according to the Hill Reported.
“The Court will, if necessary, set the new trial date when ruling on Defendant’s post-hearing motion,” Merchan wrote, adding: “It is this Court’s directive that the parties, including Defendant, make no commitment or otherwise enter into pending completion of this process remains in effect.”
What the Manhattan District Attorney said
They were ready for trial on the previously indicated date, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office. However, the agency hinted that it will not oppose the delay out of an “abundance of caution.”
What Trump’s legal team said
The former US president’s legal team said the new documents would require a delay extending until the end of April. In a letter written to the judge on Thursday, Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Susan Necheles stated: “For now, however, a delay is necessary, and thirty days is not sufficient given the amount of recently produced material and the nature of the ongoing dispute. .”
Bragg’s office said it had previously requested the records and placed blame on the U.S. Attorney’s Office. However, Trump’s lawyers accused Bragg of trying to “rewrite the record.” According to court filings, federal prosecutors will make their final production of documents on Friday, The Hill reported.
During the hearing, Merchan said he would review the delay in receiving the data from federal prosecutors. He asked each party to submit a detailed timeline, including their correspondence with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, according to The Hill.
“The correspondence must include, but is not limited to, letters, subpoenas, emails, notes, messages, etc. The requested documents are necessary for this Court to properly assess who, if anyone, is to blame for the late presentation of the documents. , what prejudice, if any, has been suffered by both parties and what sanction(s), if any, are appropriate,” Merchan wrote.
“This Court emphasizes that the hearing will be limited to the specific issue of Defendant’s motion to dismiss based on the People’s alleged discovery violations relating to USAO-SDNY’s production of documents – alone,” Merchan wrote, according to The Hill.
The delay in the hearing will benefit Trump as he seeks to delay his ongoing criminal trials. In the hush money lawsuit, Trump has filed a separate motion asking for evidence to be thrown out based on his immunity claims, suggesting the entire case be dropped. The Supreme Court is considering the case.
In connection with the case, Trump said prosecutors engaged in discovery violations as he asked for the charges against him to be dismissed and for sanctions to be imposed against prosecutors.
Bragg’s office rejected the allegations and insisted it was meeting its obligations.