Jean MartinThe judge decided to delay for a month after Trump’s attorneys said they required more time to sift through newly released records.
Judge Grants Postponement in Trump’s Hush-Money Trial
A judge has granted a 30-day delay in Donald Trump‘s hush-money criminal trial, pushing the start date to at least mid-April.
The decision came after Trump’s legal team requested more time to review extensive evidence recently obtained from a previous federal investigation.
Evidence Review and Trial Postponement
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan approved the postponement and scheduled a hearing for 25 March to address concerns regarding the newly acquired evidence.
Originally set to commence on 25 March, the trial is one of four criminal indictments against Trump, who is also the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee.
Trump’s lawyers had requested a 90-day delay, aiming to push the trial into early summer. However, prosecutors agreed to a 30-day adjournment to ensure adequate time for the defense to review the new materials.
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Evidence Dump and Defense Claims
In the past two weeks, Trump’s legal team received tens of thousands of pages of evidence from the US attorney’s office in Manhattan, which investigated the hush-money arrangements during Trump’s presidency. The evidence includes records related to former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, now a prosecution witness.
Trump’s lawyers assert that some of the newly acquired evidence, particularly concerning Michael Cohen, is “exculpatory and favorable to the defense.” They argue that the payments made to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses and not part of any cover-up.
Case Background
The hush-money case revolves around allegations that Trump falsified his company’s records to conceal payments to Cohen, who facilitated a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign. The payment aimed to silence Daniels’s claims of an extramarital encounter with Trump years earlier.
Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of alsifying business records and has consistently denied any sexual encounter with Daniels.
Conclusion
As Trump’s hush-money trial faces a delay for evidence review, the case continues to draw attention and scrutiny. The postponement underscores the complexity of the legal proceedings and the significance of the newly obtained evidence in shaping the outcome of the trial.
