On April 30, former United States President Donald Trump was held in contempt and fined $9,000 for violating a gag order. Prior to this time, Trump had been very vocal about exercising his right to free speech, seeing that he had been experiencing some restrictions while trying to voice his opinions. Well, the judge agreed to let him exercise that right.
What the Judge Had To Say to Trump
“Defendant is hereby warned that the Court will not tolerate continued willful violations of its lawful orders, and if necessary and appropriate under the circumstances, the court will impose an incarceration punishment,” the judge said. This isn’t the first time Trump has been fined for violating gag orders.
He was fined more than $15,000 for violating the gag order placed during his trial for civil fraud. According to persecutors, Trump violated the order ten times, but Judge Juan Merchan mentioned that Trump only violated it nine times.
During the trial, Trump was seen frowning as the judge passed the ruling. The judge said the court will not allow “willful violations of its lawful orders.”
ALSO READ: Trump’s Criminal Trial Is Days Away, Here’s Everything We Know About It
Why Is the Former President on Trial?
Well, prosecutors have charged Donald Trump for partaking in an illegal scheme that happened in 2016. Donald Trump testified that he was innocent and the claims aren’t true. However, there seem to be three people who got paid from the hush money. One of them is Stormy Daniels, an adult film star.
Around that time, the former president sent $130,000 to Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels. This was done to keep Daniels shut, seeing that she threatened to tell her story of the sexual encounter she had with Trump in 2006.
However, Trump denies having anything to do with the film star. He claims that it’s a witch hunt pulled off by the Democrats to wreck his presidential bid.
Trump is the first ex-president of the US to be criminally charged. The fact that he needs to constantly be in court is reducing his campaign time. This is so sad because the election between his opponent, President Biden, is around the corner.
Witnesses Against Donald Trump in the Hush Money Trial
Michael Cohen, Trump’s former attorney, and Stormy Daniel testified during the hush money trial. Cohen claims he helped Trump open an account with First Republic Bank under the company name Essential Consultants to make payments to Stormy Daniel.
ALSO READ: NY Judge Issues Gag Order on Trump in Hush Money Trial Over His “Inflammatory” Remarks
Gary Farro, the former senior managing director of the bank, also took the witness stand to testify against Trump. He mentioned that he helped Michael Cohen create the account he used to make payments in 2016. Gary also said Cohen took out money from his home’s line of credit to open the account so his wife wouldn’t find out what he was up to.
Another witness who testified against Trump is David Pecker, a former National Enquirer publisher. He made mention of the “catch and kill” scheme created by Trump to buy and bury any story that could have jeopardized the former president’s campaign.
David Pecker also mentioned that he was paid to bury a story from a doorman who made false claims that Donald Trump had a child out of wedlock. He also added that the amount he was paid to bury the story was $30,000.
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