NY: Trump on Trial!

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1770482898111476075https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1770485126692032652https://twitter.com/emptywheel/status/1770487162787549359

[wbrocks67]

April trial is back on, boys

https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1770827278500446338

[emailking]

So hopefully on Monday then he'll finalize an April 15 trial date, which I think was tentative.

[brucejoel99]

April trial is back on, boys

https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1770827278500446338

https://twitter.com/annabower/status/1770823466473738525https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1770828701908803996https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1770831483923546303https://twitter.com/aweissmann_/status/1770827506523726037

[brucejoel99]

TAX DAY TRUMP TRIAL!!

https://twitter.com/AWeissmann_/status/1772272383354691790https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1772275641645174841https://twitter.com/harrylitman/status/1772275876836598032https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1772277461985681917https://twitter.com/harrylitman/status/1772278819891695857https://twitter.com/emptywheel/status/1772279173744062859https://twitter.com/harrylitman/status/1772279416359424464https://twitter.com/harrylitman/status/1772280691159450106https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1772280812576051364https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1772295052670238894https://twitter.com/eorden/status/1772295324809277888https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1772296666504147023

[wbrocks67]

"Trump's attorney Todd Blanche asks to file a motion today to delay the trial because of pretrial publicity."

Oh my god these people just never stop. It's never ending, enough with the theatrics and the delays. Thankfully it sounds like the judge is done with the nonsense and going full steam ahead.

Thankfully at least one of the trials will definitely happen before the election now.

[emailking]

2 weeks till the eclipse and 3 weeks until Trump's first trial.

[brucejoel99]

This is gonna be a fun trial:

https://twitter.com/SirJeremyLondon/status/1772266378717790654

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/kyledcheney/status/1772652000112517275https://twitter.com/trumpdailyposts/status/1772649835562447222https://twitter.com/trumpdailyposts/status/1772649516766052606https://twitter.com/trumpdailyposts/status/1772649131187785743

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1772676943713849607https://twitter.com/frankrunyeon/status/1772675268152365316https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1772679174756458513https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1772680686811430926https://twitter.com/klasfeldreports/status/1772689648927522975

[wbrocks67]

It's very refreshing to see a judge put up with none of Trump and his team's nonsense.

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/kyledcheney/status/1772697666431934916

[wbrocks67]

It's very refreshing to see a judge put up with none of Trump and his team's nonsense.

[brucejoel99]

It's very refreshing to see a judge put up with none of Trump and his team's nonsense.

https://twitter.com/harrylitman/status/1772700081566732793

[emailking]

Great decisions today by Judge Merchan!

Trump went after the guy's daughter today. What a ******.

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1773071280301920404https://twitter.com/kaivanshroff/status/1773012033262215543

[brucejoel99]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1773071280301920404
https://twitter.com/kaivanshroff/status/1773012033262215543

https://twitter.com/jsweetli/status/1773112913324052484https://twitter.com/jsweetli/status/1773113129175581114

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/rgoodlaw/status/1772988594925302076

This is an amazingly comprehensive document.

[wbrocks67]

Wild that Trump will be in a courtroom for 6-8 weeks, unable to campaign pretty much at all. Actions have consequences

[Ljube]

Wild that Trump will be in a courtroom for 6-8 weeks, unable to campaign pretty much at all. Actions have consequences

Yeah, I can't understand why Trump falsified his business records in the first place.
He could have just compensated Michael Cohen.
He had already won the election.

This is something I would like to hear from Trump, why he did it, provided he decides to testify.

[Fmr. Gov. NickG]

I'm curious about the tax fraud allegation.  It seems to stem from the fact that Michael Cohen falsely reporting reimbursements as income.  Even regardless of the fact that this increased the amount Cohen had to pay in taxes, how is this tax fraud on the part of Trump and not just Cohen?

[brucejoel99]

I'm curious about the tax fraud allegation.  It seems to stem from the fact that Michael Cohen falsely reporting reimbursements as income.  Even regardless of the fact that this increased the amount Cohen had to pay in taxes, how is this tax fraud on the part of Trump and not just Cohen?

All 34 counts allege the same charge of falsifying business records in the first degree. For each count, per New York's standard jury instructions the two elements that must be proven are:

(1) That on or about the date in question, Trump made or caused a false entry in the business records of an enterprise; […] and

(2) Trump did so with intent to defraud that included an intent to commit another crime or to aid or conceal the commission thereof.

[…] In terms of part (2) [of the statute], intent to defraud, "courts in the First Department have interpreted this culpable mental state broadly. Intent to defraud is not constricted to an intent to deprive another of property or money. In fact, 'intent to defraud' can extend beyond economic concern. Nor is there any requirement that a defendant intend to conceal the commission of his own crime; instead, 'a person can commit First Degree Falsifying Business Records by falsifying records with the intent to cover up a crime committed by somebody else.'" People v. Trump 2024 NY Slip Op 30560(U). […]

As part of establishing the second element of each falsifying records charge, DANY must prove that Trump intended to commit, aid, or conceal another crime—in this case, […] New York tax law. Importantly, DANY does not have to prove that Trump actually violated [New York tax law], but rather that by falsifying (or causing the falsification of) business records he had the intent to commit, aid, or conceal the commission of such crime(s). […]

For the purposes of tax violations, Bragg relies on two related tax provisions: New York Tax Law §§ 1801(a)(3) & 1802. Section 1801(a) sets out relevant tax fraud acts, with subsection (3) prohibiting "knowingly suppl[ying] or submit[ting] materially false or fraudulent information in connection with any [tax] return, audit, investigation, or proceeding." The tax fraud includes four elements: (1) a tax document filed, submitted or supplied; (2) falsity; (3) materiality; and (4) intent (willfulness). Any person who commits a tax fraud act, including under 1801(a)(3), is guilty, at a minimum, of criminal tax fraud in the fifth degree, a Class A misdemeanor crime under Section 1802, where the tax liability is less than $3,000. No additional mens rea is required, such as an intent to evade taxes or defraud the state. In this case, the primary alleged tax violation was Cohen falsely declaring the reimbursement as income, which artificially increased his tax liability. As Justice Merchan already found, however, an allegation of tax fraud where the state "was not financially harmed … and instead would wind up collecting more tax revenue" does not preclude the tax violation from being a predicate act for the first degree falsification of business records.

[Ljube]

Whatever it is, it is not election interference, because the election was over by the time Trump falsified his business records. Therefore, the second prosecutor's theory will probably not stand to scrutiny.
I would like to know his motive, but he would have to tell us that himself.
The only other person who may know about Trump's motive is Michael Cohen, who is untrustworthy.

All three prosecutor's theories heavily depend on the testimony of Michael Cohen, who already admitted that he falsely testified in 2018.
If Trump offers a compelling alternative theory, he could be acquitted here.
A logical conclusion would be that he wanted to conceal the payments of the non-disclosure agreements irrespective of the election or any other circumstance. However, I'm not sure he would need to falsify his business records to do that.

If he wanted to cover up for his buddy Cohen, that would qualify as a felony under this indictment (theory 1, or 3, or both).

Probably the best defense for Trump is to prove that he was not involved in the detailed decisions made about this payment and that he did not believe he did anything wrong. The key element of the crime Trump was indicted for is criminal intent.

[emailking]

Whatever it is, it is not election interference, because the election was over by the time Trump falsified his business records.

It doesn't matter. The payoff and silencing occurred before the election, when it could have made a difference in the election, and he presumably was planning at that time to later cover it up by falsifying his business records. It's an election interference case.

[wbrocks67]

Whatever it is, it is not election interference, because the election was over by the time Trump falsified his business records.

It doesn't matter. The payoff and silencing occurred before the election, when it could have made a difference in the election, and he presumably was planning at that time to later cover it up by falsifying his business records. It's an election interference case.

Bingo, not sure how that is not election interference. Trump's sole purpose in doing all of that was so that it would not come out before the election.