A judge has rejected an effort by Donald Trump to delay or dismiss his hush-money case in New York, and the already-delayed trial is set to begin next month.
The former U.S. president appeared in court on Monday to ask Judge Juan Merchan to dismiss criminal charges that he paid hush money to adult film actresses.
Judge Merchan rejected the defense’s arguments to postpone the case and kept the trial date for Monday, April 15. That all but ensures that Trump will become the first former U.S. president to face a criminal trial, paving the way for the Republican presidential nominee to be convicted or acquitted before the November election.
Trump’s lawyers have tried to argue that the delay was needed because prosecutors did not disclose evidence to them in a timely manner as required by law.
They claim prosecutors turned over thousands of pages of potential evidence on witness Michael Cohen weeks ago.
“We will not actively suppress or suppress discoverable or impeachable material in any way,” prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told the court.
The documents come from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan, which previously investigated Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, for arranging a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election (£102,800) in hush money. He is expected to be a key witness for Mr Trump.
Ms. Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, had hoped to sell her story about a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump that she said occurred a decade ago — which Mr. Trump denies. this encounter.
Cohen previously testified that Trump directed him to make the payments and was jailed in 2018 after pleading guilty to violating campaign finance laws.
Trump’s trial was initially scheduled to begin on Monday, but prosecutors agreed to a 30-day delay to give him time to review new documents.
Judge Merchan summoned both sides to court this week to explain what happened to the documents so he can decide what to do next.
Colangelo said the number of relevant new documents available was “pretty small,” but Trump lawyer Todd Branch countered, “We strongly disagree.”
He said the number totaled thousands and continued to grow, adding that delays in disclosure required the case to be dismissed or delayed for at least three months.
“If we don’t independently review these materials, we’re not doing our job,” Mr Branch said. “Every document is important.”
Before the hearing, Trump said the case should be dismissed. “No crime,” he wrote on his Truth social platform.
Speaking to reporters as he entered the court, he reiterated that the case was a “witch hunt and a hoax.”
The hearing comes nearly a year after the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office filed a 34-count indictment accusing Trump of falsifying business records related to hush-money deals. Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
This is just one of the many legal woes facing Trump, 77, as he ramps up his 2024 presidential campaign.
In a separate case Monday, the presumptive Republican nominee had just hours to submit a $454 million cash penalty in his civil fraud case or proceed with an appeal if he wants to avoid having his assets seized by the government. , you will need to obtain a bond from a private company. But the court gave him an unexpected victory, reducing the fine to $175m (£138m) and giving him another 10 days to pay.
He faces three other criminal cases that focus on his efforts to overturn his 2020 loss to Joe Biden and his handling of sensitive government documents after leaving office in 2021. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
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