An official decision list from New York’s top court on Tuesday states that the court has decided not to hear Donald Trump’s appeal regarding the gag order in his ‘hush-money’ case.
Judge Juan Merchan’s gag order in the criminal case against Trump is still in place.
Trump was convicted on all 34 felony counts of falsification of business records by a unanimous jury, making him the first former president to be found guilty of a crime.
Prior to the trial, Justice Juan Merchan had imposed a limited gag order on Trump, restricting his ability to comment on witnesses, prosecutors, jurors, court staff, and their relatives.
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The judge cited concerns about threats to the potential participants in the proceedings and the need to protect the integrity of the judicial process.
As the trial concluded, Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, filed a letter requesting that the judge terminate the gag order.
“This Gag Order restricts President Trump’s core political speech on matters of central importance at the height of his Presidential campaign, where he is the leading candidate, and thus it violates the fundamental right of every American voter to hear from the leading candidate for President on matters of enormous public importance,” his attorney wrote.
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Blanche argued that the concerns that led to the imposition of the order no longer justified the restrictions on Trump’s First Amendment rights. He emphasized the former president’s status as a leading candidate in the 2024 election and the need for “unrestrained campaign advocacy” in light of recent comments by President Biden and “continued attacks” against Trump by government witnesses.
In response, attorneys from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office wrote to the court, opposing the lifting of the gag order at least until the sentencing hearing and the resolution of any post-trial motions.
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