Judge Merchan Fines Trump $9,000 for Violating Gag Order
“The decision comes days after a hearing was held to determine whether Trump’s recent social media posts about certain witnesses in the case truly violated the order.”
Judge Juan Merchan, who oversees the hush money case, fined President Donald Trump $9,000 for nine gag order violations:
The decision comes days after a hearing was held to determine whether Trump’s recent social media posts about certain witnesses in the case truly violated the order, including whether merely reposting content others had written about the case amounted to a violation.
Trump lawyer Todd Blanche argued last week that his client was responding to political attacks, adding there was “absolutely no willful violation of the gag order.”
The former president released a statement on Wednesday decrying the gag order as “totally UNCONSTITUTIONAL!”
“The Conflicted Judge’s friends and party members can say whatever they want about me, but I am not allowed to respond,” Trump posted to Truth Social last Tuesday. He also ripped judges who presided over a civil fraud case against the Trump Organization, Justice Arthur Engoron, and who oversaw his defamation trial, Judge Lewis Kaplan.
- Making or directing others to make public statements about known or reasonably foreseeable witnesses concerning their potential participation in the investigation or in this criminal proceeding;
- Making or directing others to make public statements about (1) counsel in the case other than the District Attorney, (2) members of the court’s staff and the District Attorney’s staff, or (3) the family members of any counsel or staff member, if those statements are made with the intent to materially interfere with, or to cause others to materially interfere with, counsel’s or staff’s work in this criminal case, or with the knowledge that such interference is likely to result; and
- Making or directing others to make public statements about any prospective juror or any juror in this criminal proceeding.
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Comments
A Mike Flynn AG can restore the republic outside civil war…
Great Maker, Trump simply doesn’t know when to keep his fecking mouth shut. The question I have is where are his lawyers. You know, the ones that are supposed to be giving him legal services and advice. You’d think they’d be telling Trump to knock it off with the idiotic comments. Especially when it can get him into trouble with the Judge. But I guess even if they are giving Trump sound advice he’s more likely than not to just ignore it and shoot off his mouth and post his rantings on TruthSocial no matter what. Trump’s ego won’t allow him to do anything else even if it’s for his own good. And now we’ll get to hear his whining and whinging about how the “corrupt judge” fined him for violations of the “unconstitutional gag order” because he just couldn’t keep his mouth shut. And in the end who cares. All of these problems Trump brings upon himself with his lack of self-control and desperate need to play the looks at me game. In the end I guess he needs to count himself lucky it was only a $9,000 fine. It could have been significantly worse. But maybe that’s what Trump needs to get his attention because next time it will be worse. No doubt about that.
Show us on the dolly where Trump hurt your fweelings sweetie 😂😂
Tell me how you get all that brown stuff 💩 off your nose when you remove it from Trump’s anal canal . . . sweetie 😂 😂
He’s more on target than you.
Better than it covering your whole head.
That’s just wrong
(It’s not a cover-the whole head is made of shit)
🙂
Return to your village, they’ve noticed their idiot is missing 😂😂
But Trump isn’t the good obedient little puppet that you are he’s a leader
At the rate Trump’s going this “leader” is going to find himself dead broke and in jail. All because he couldn’t keep his mouth shut and not piss off the Judge(s) in his numerous legal cases.
No, because he doesn’t want to see the socialist/communist left destroy the last bastion of freedom on this planet.
People are waking up from the lies of the “woke,” and seeing this for the political persecution that it is.
NYC is now has a banana republic court system, replete with kangaroos.
Actually, I think you owe the kangaroos an apology for that.
GWB: agreed. And at least I could get a reasonable argument/debate from the kangaroo.
If that happens, it’s because democrat prosecuters and judges are evil pieces of ship. But let’s be kind and spineless is the absolute greatest problem we have from the republican party, including you. Keep being a statesman while they cut your dick’s sporting good off.
Left: pro rights
Maga: Trump right to be king
Sure buddy
I wish he would push Merchan to the limits, Talk about Stormy, Cohen, his wife and daughter and refuse to pay any fine and see what that corrupt judge has the balls to do then
What would happen?
Go to jail. Go directly to jail Do not pass Go. Do not collect $200.
That’s what would happen. It would be worth it only to see the Only Trumper cultist’s heads exploding in outrage.
Would it be worth it to watch the country self immolate under the continued tender mercies of the communist Biden regime?
If you think so, do not pass “GO,” head directly to Venezuela. Or North Korea.
The Judge pushed the point. Now, Trump has standing to sue on Constitutional grounds.
Judges have limited authority to impose gag orders to protect contaminating the jury pool.
They do NOT have authority to impose a gag order to protect themselves or their courts from criticism.
Oh look! Four down votes from the Only Trumper cultists. I’m devastated. I have been put in my place. Whatever shall I do. Oh Woe is me! Woe is me! I will have to call my therapist and schedule several sessions to get over it . . .
No, not really. Guess speaking the truth hurts the Only Trumper cultists.
It’s good that you recognize the need for a therapist.
It’s not “only Trump;” it is only America.
The left just loves their communist lawfare and tearing down America.
You are a good little apparatchik.
“Four?” Patience. Wait for the magic of Compound Interest.
And exponential disgust.
Up to five down votes now from our resident Only Trumper Cultists. Wonder how many sockpuppets they will invoke to downvote the truth.
Your rant offends a lot of people as concerns law and our burden under it, much more than anyone being an OnlyTrumpist. It’s not our duty as citizens to simply lay down and let the “law” run roughshod over us.
Also, I doubt any of us would go to the trouble of making WordPress sockpuppets. It’s just not worth the effort for your comments.
You mean you want your man to be above the law, got it
Idiot.
Edging over votes on a comment thread?
I’m not an “Only Trumper Cultist” (whatever the fuck that is), but I happily downvoted you.
Mainly because you still don’t get it: what good will it do for Trump to shut his mouth and abide by an unconstitutional gag order brought on by Democrat lawfare?
Answer: no good at all, as that’s EXACTLY what these Democrat pricks want.
And therein lies the problem. You STILL think that keeping your mouth shut in the face of increasingly desperate, unhinged and unconstitutional lawfare is going to save you?
All of these Progressive bastards need to start getting punched in the mouth.
Sorry? What court of law has declared the gag order unconstitutional. Please provide a link to that decision.
And sometime thinking about the consequences of your actions and statements is a good thing. Especially when failing to do so could potentially piss off a person who literally has the power to throw you in jail and toss away the key if they so chose to do so. I’m not saying he needs to shut up completely but for God’s sake and his he really needs to start thinking about those consequences. Today it was only $9,000. Tomorrow he could very well be sitting incommunicado in a jail cell. It’s all on him. Nobody else.
Don’t be a f*cking idiot. The gag order hasn’t yet gone to court but when it gets there, it will be thrown out as the political crap that it is.
Just Google anything Jonathan Turley has written regarding this trial and the gag order. You’ll see what I mean.
>>:Don’t be a f*cking idiot. The gag order hasn’t yet gone to court but when it gets there, it will be thrown out as the political crap that it is.
Just Google anything Jonathan Turley has written regarding this trial and the gag order. You’ll see what I mean.
And you don’t be a fecking idiot. The gag order is in effect until that superior court declares it unconstitutional and throws it out or mandates significant changes to it. Until then Trump better toe the line or he might find himself somewhere he doesn’t want to be.
F*ck that corrupt piece of sh*t judge. We already know that trial is illegitimate and he’ll never had a chance of a fair due process.
Doesn’t matter. Judge A**hat was going to find *something* to nail him on. Kangaroo Court.
And Trump handed him the “something” in spades. Nine violations of the gag order that is rightly or wrongly still in force at the present time. Trump doesn’t need enemies. He’s his own worst enemy and this whole mess is going to end very poorly for him. guranteed.
You’re missing the point. It DOES NOT MATTER if Trump follows their rules. They’ll still come up with something to hang on him. This whole thing would be a farce if it weren’t so serious. You sound like you’d say victims of Soviet show trials should have told the truth and they’d have been OK. Completely illogical.
The only thing more popular than indicted Trump is incarcerated Trump. He is double dog daring Merchan. Lol.
incarcerated Trump with all access to the internet and TruthSocial cutoff and limited to conversations with his lawyers over the old landline phone in the prison activity room (no smartphone for Donnie!) and nobody else. Sure, that’ll make him really popular. Lol
Well, Hidin’ Biden spent his “campaign” in the basement.
I meant to downvote
The day will come when kangaroo Judge Juan Merchan and others are held accountable for willful election interference and a variety of other crimes..
Yes, yes, we know: MLK should have said yes massa and kept himself out of the Birmingham jail. He just couldn’t keep his mouth shut.
It’s a well spent $9000, campaignwise.
This court is so corrupt that they fined me $9000 for saying it’s corrupt.
No, the Court fined Trump $9,000 because he just couldn’t keep his mouth shut and his hands off his keyboard and made stupid comments on TruthSocial.
Which proved his point about what a corrupt piece of shit the so-called judge is.
So why are you so upset if Pres. Trump is only hurting himself?
Because it’s all self-inflicted on Trump’s part. He has no self-control or restraint. He just blats out anything that comes into his head without apparently thinking what the consequences of his actions will be. He’s like a little child. And when punished for his actions it’s never his fault. Never. It’s a “corrupt judge” (Merchan isn’t) or “unconstitutional gag order” (it isn’t) and yah, yah, yah. But put the blame where it belongs? Nope. Never happens. it’s always someone else’s fault for the trouble Trump gets into. And that’s what upsets me. That’s what pisses me off.
No one cares if you are pissed off, Just wait for the fun to begins in 2025, then you will be really pissed off.
President Trump is/has/will be accused of everything that the Biden regime is actually doing, while Biden flounders trying to be 1% of the success President Trump was during his term.
All of that was flushed down the crapper on Jan 21, when Biden, armed with Executive Orders he never saw before, undid all the good, pro American actions that President Trump was able to enact even with the ongoing lies and hoaxes from the left.
No wonder the “fact checkers” retired when Biden was installed; they would never get any sleep trying to cover for him!
rhhardin is right. The publicity is worth far more than $9,000. For proof just check out all the thumbs down you’re getting.
Thumbs down from the Only Trumper cultist sockpuppets isn’t saying much. They automatically downvote anyone that even makes the slightest hint of negative against their Lord & Master, Donnie Trump.
But all the rest of us are downvoting you, too.
Still worried about votes? You’re not even worth the effort.
TDS rules!
What a stupid post. Your constant “Only Trumper cultist” bullshit is trite, silly, and also incorrect.
You’re now just lashing out because you’ve been thoroughly bitchslapped here.
Give it up, and perhaps recall The First Law of Holes.
Publicity that Trump is having a tantrum? Yeah only other children would see that as good publicity
When it demonstrates the rampant TDS in the media, academia and deep state, it sure is! Opening eyes shut by wokeism!
And speaking of self inflicted, the porous border, lousy economy, destruction of our legal system and academia shows that the left simply cannot restrain themselves.
Yet another projection from the left onto Pres. Trump.
The pendulum swings, lefties.
No, no, no! Trump isn’t throwing a temper tantrum. He is being oppressed by
The Manthe Deep State.You seem unfamiliar with the proverb “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”. It’s not like Trump is trying to appeal to adult thinking.
You and Lucifer been taking long soapy showers together, FartE?
@dimsdale
Rampant TDS where you make excuses for his behaviour by baseless smears on everyone else, open your eyes to your excuse making.
Lol you really making stuff don’t you. When you can actually discuss reality maybe you’ll be able to form a coherent point.
All the projection is from you
@gravityopera
You think being forced to obey the law and recognising the rights of others is Trump being attacked by the deepstate. No it’s called all equal in the eyes of the law.
Lol bad publicity where independents think he is a complete moron and continues to prove it, bad publicity where moderate conservatives who believe in the rule of law think he is acting like a mobster and continues to prove it. You are right in that Trump supporters continue to be give him money for legal bills, I wonder when he will reach $100m spent on legal fees
@BartE,
No, I don’t think that. I think your sarcasm meter needs calibration.
Every time he defies them, he makes money.
Every time he defies them he gains more support.
Every time he defies them people like you whine like infants.
I’m shocked gag orders aren’t subject to interlocutory appeal. What other clear violations of a defendant’s constitutional rights can judges foist commit without any avenue for appeal before conviction? Can a judge bar a defendant from presenting a defense…or having legal representation? Seems that may be the case, at least in NY.
Don’t jurisdictional issues also have to be settled before trial begins? Bragg clearly doesn’t have jurisdictional authority prosecute a federal crime and the judge doesn’t have jurisdiction to hear a federal crime yet here we are. Where does it end?
NY is getting what they deserve, flooded with illegals and a massive exodus of people and businesses, + people shunning business just because they are in NY.
Yes. He merely needs to make every evidentiary and procedural ruling in favor of the prosecution. That isn’t the same as an actual order not to present a defense, but it has the same effect.
Make them throw you in jail. The optics would be fabulous. If he has wise people, he would be writing “Letters From A
BirminghamNew York Jail” on Truth Social every day. And every single one would include how his principles would change the justice system back to when it was the envy of the world.Maybe if he shot a cop in cold blood, NPR would give him his own segment on All Things Considered.
I think he’d have to change his name to something with Mumia or Mohamed in it, for that to work, though.
True, that.
The judge is clearly violating his 1st amendment rights – WHILE HE’S RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT. SCOTUS has said in essence that political speech is the most protected speech. This trial is a political trial and the abuse he is receiving during this trial is a key part of his campaign. One of his key campaign points is fighting the politicization of the justice department. But judge won’t let him campaign on this. How much more of a violation of the 1st amendment can there be?
Why hasn’t he already filed suit with SCOTUS to reclaim is 1st amendment right?
To answer your last question, he has already appealed the gag order…in NY appellate court. That court has refused to stay the trial pending appeal. From what I understand from reading commentary from practicing criminal defense lawyers, he can’t appeal the gag order itself in federal court nor appeal the failure of the NY state appellate court to stay the trial pending the appeal until the appeal process is exhausted in NY. Seems crazy, I know.
The reality is unlike civil trials where there’s a wider window for interlocutory appeals (that means appeals heard and decided BEFORE the trial can begin or resume), these windows simply don’t exist in criminal law, with few exceptions.
“How *dare* the leading candidate for the Presidency express his opinion regarding the political prosecution leveled at him by his political opponent! How dare he!”
–Every Leftist on Twitter
So in other words, Trump is calling the corrupt judge’s bluff and dared him to throw him in jail, and the idiot leftist blinked and backed down because he cares only about the politics of it.
$9000 is pocket change to Trump. If he were charged $9000 for every single tweet he sent he’d still do it.
If the judge actually thought the law was on his side Trump would be in a cell right now, exactly as he threatened.
Instead, by levying this WEAK fine, he’s admitting that he knows he can’t get away with it, and that it hurts his political party.
Trump WANTS him to throw him in jail, It would get him 5+ points instantly.
If President Trump is jailed, he will be epsteined within minutes. He really should do everything he can to stay out of jail.
Might be difficult to epstein him if he still has Secret Service protection.
This situation would truly be terra incognita.
Democrats in Congress are already working on it.
They are trying to strip Trump of Secret Service protection.
That assumes said jail would allow them to accompany Trump inside. By the time Trump’s lawyers can get a writ allowing it Trump could already be dead or severely injured. The other problem is that said SS agents are employees of a government functionally owned by the deep state. If they tried to protect Trump on principle I’d expect a quiet word from unnamable people ordering them to stand down. I’d expect them to be no more principled than municipal LEOs who let cities burn when ordered i.e. protecting their pay and pensions is paramount.
TY,, I would worry about it. Every minute.
Not suggesting, just pondering,….if Trump were jailed and harmed what could be the possible ramifications for the judge?
Absent some compelling – irrefutable – evidence the judge was an active participant in a broader conspiracy to put Trump in jail, absolutely no ramifications whatsoever. Judges have created judicial immunity for themselves. Unless the government (or plaintiffs in a civil action) can demonstrate that the official acts that judge has taken were illegal in some way, he/she enjoys immunity from criminal and civil repercussions of those actions.
I honestly can’t think of a single instance where a judge was held criminally liable for a decision he made on the bench. Not saying it doesn’t happen, but it’s extremely rare. The last prosecutor I can remember who had his immunity pierced was the Duke Lacross prosecutor. I believe he was eventually convicted for his behavior in that prosecution.
Is there any doubt about a broader conspiracy? From what I can tell, judges can be prosecuted for “Color of Law” offences.
The $9,000 fine ($1,000 per offense) is the maximum the judge can inflict under New York law (fines for contempt). The judge made it clear he was extremely disappointed that he could only levy a 9,000 fine and that he would have handed down a much more severe fine if it were allowed.
This judge needs to be held in contempt.
I wonder if Biden’s handlers will seize on this to get their addled boss out of the fix he put himself in by saying on Howard Stern’s show that he would debate Trump.
“Well, of course he meant it but OMG how could he give a forum to a man who has been found in contempt of court?!”
Hi all:
I have questions about the criminal procedure in NY State.
1. Is this criminal contempt or civil contempt?
2. Does the fact that Judge Merchan has now made a finding do contempt and imposed a penalty provide Pres. Trump an opportunity to appeal (interlocutory) the
(a) finding of contempt?
(b) amount of the penalty? and, crucially
(c) constitutionality of the gag order?
Very perplexed about the constant analysis on all media about the injustice of these cases but very little information provided about remedies.
Rgds
BMacL
First, I agree ENTIRELY that the vast majority of lawyers commenting in the media are laughably short on details…probably because most of them aren’t practicing lawyers have no idea what they’re talking about. With respect to this contempt citation, it’s a CRIMINAL citation and Marchan has found ‘beyond any reasonable doubt’ that Trump is guilty of contempt. The order is below..
https://www.nycourts.gov/LegacyPDFS/press/PDFs/D.O.motion4contempt-FINAL.pdf
This could be problematic for Trump’s federal cases because a condition of his bail (a condition of all bail granted) is that the defendant doesn’t commit any more crimes. There’s some chance Smith could move to revoke Trump’s bail. While that wouldn’t go anywhere in the Miami DOCs case, that Judge Chutken in DC is an absolute witch. Who knows what she could do. I’m not sure what the federal guidelines on revocation are. So, it’s possible ‘criminal contempt’ wouldn’t satisfy the definition of a new ‘crime’ for the purposes of bail.
Thinking about Judge Chutken more. Because the case is no longer before her – it’s before the Supreme Court and will remain with the Supreme Court until they remand it – she may have no authority to revoke Trump’s bail even if she wanted to.
Thanks!
Hopefully, Trump will appoint an AG and an FBI director who ain’t squeamish and can do what the state of NY is doing to Trump — comb through and find something in the 89,000 federal regulations that can be stretched just enough to land that judge a federal prison cell.
Follow the money, and there will likely be no need to stretch anything.
Yes. I suspect that many of the NY judges and likely the AG have second homes in places like Florida, or the coast of Georgia/South Carolina. Exam the transactions closely (like the former Baltimore Mayor case) and a red state DA is likely to find financial crimes like fraud. If so, throw the book at them. In fact, it is likely that some of the NY City judges and prosecutors live or own property in Suffolk County which is far more conservative than the city and the government is pretty solid GOP.
Equal treatment under the law. No special privileges for the Democrat elites.
What if the stress of his work is so bad that he turned to illegal drugs, and was caught with them?
Pass the Prevent Presidential Harassment Act:
1. Jurisdiction over all litigation brought against a current or former President shall lie exclusively in federal court.
2. The President or former President shall have the right, within ninety days of the filing of such litigation, shall have the absolute right to transfer the venue of the proceeding to the district court of his or her choice.
3. Any President or former President who substantially prevails in such a proceeding shall be entitled to an award of his or her attorney’s fees, expert witness fees, and costs.
1. Jurisdiction over all litigation brought against a current or former President for actions taken during their Presidential term, shall lie exclusively in federal court, and will require approval from no less than two thirds of the Senate.
I wouldn’t pay it.
Trump needs to dare the judge the jail him for violating the gag order and get this before SCOTUS immediately, because it’s otherwise obvious that the real purpose of the order is to silence Trump for the entirety of this election season. It’s real simple for the judge to add extensions and delays keeping the gag order in place until after the election.