All About Todd Blanche, Donald Trump's Attorney in Ongoing Criminal Cases
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Todd Blanche joined Donald Trump's defense team in April 2023 after the former president was first indicted in a New York City hush money case
Meet Donald Trump's attorney representing him in his trial in the Stormy Daniels hush money case beginning April 15.
White-collar defense attorney Todd Blanche was hired on the eve of Trump's New York City arraignment in April 2023 to stand by the Republican presidential nominee's side as he became the first sitting or former U.S. president to answer to criminal charges.
Two months later, Blanche once again was tasked with representing the former president, but in a federal criminal case tied to Trump's alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving the White House.
A 1996 graduate from American University with a degree in law from Brooklyn Law School, Blanche worked in the United States Attorneys' Offices for almost a decade and has represented notable figures associated with Trump in various legal cases in the years that followed.
Blanche's move to represent Trump came as the politician reportedly struggled to assemble a team of respected defense lawyers, the Washington Post reported last April. Retaining counsel for his arraignment appeared just as challenging, a trust legal source told PEOPLE.
Trump became the first-ever U.S. president to face criminal charges last spring, when a grand jury indicted him on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
If the 12 unbiased jurors (who are being selected from a pool of 500 New Yorkers) decide to convict Trump, he could face up to four years in prison for each count.
Here's everything to know about Donald Trump's principal lawyer, Todd Blanche.
He left New York City's oldest law firm to represent Trump
Blanche is a former federal prosecutor. His move to join Trump's legal team came after leaving New York City's oldest law firm, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, where he was a partner for five years.
The lawyer's decision to part ways with the white-collar defense and investigations practice was learned via an email sent from Blanch to the firm. Politico obtained the email and was the first to report the news.
"I have been asked to represent Trump in the recently charged DA case, and after much thought/consideration, I have decided it is the best thing for me to do and an opportunity I should not pass up," Blanche said in the note.
Related: Donald Trump Indicted by Grand Jury in Stormy Daniels Hush Money Case: Reports
He worked for the U.S. Attorney's Offices for nine years
Before his tenure at the N.Y.C. law firm, Blanche served as former assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York for nine years. He has extensive experience in white-collar cases that has involved investigating and prosecuting tax fraud, money laundering, Medicaid and federal programs frauds, bank and wire frauds, racketeering, homicides, armed robberies, firearms and narcotics offenses.
Related: Donald Trump's White House Valet Has Also Been Indicted as 'Co-Conspirator' in Classified Docs Case
He previously represented Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort
Blanche has experience representing political figures associated with Trump, including Paul Manafort. The politician's former campaign chairman from May to August 2016, Manafort worked with Blanche after the Manhattan D.A.O. indicted him in 2019 on charges of mortgage fraud and other state felonies.
Manafort was charged as part of former Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation in 2019 and pleaded guilty to foreign lobbying and witness tampering, as well as tax fraud and conspiracy. (Manafort was sentenced to over seven years in prison.)
Additionally, he faced financial crime charges related largely to his lobbying work in Ukraine.
He previously represented Rudy Guiliani's associate, Igor Fruman
Blanche also defended Rudy Guiliani's associate Igor Fruman, who agreed to a plea deal in a campaign finance case that landed him a one-year prison sentence. He pleaded guilty to foreign campaign violations and was sentenced in January 2022.
He's representing Trump in his first criminal trial
Trump's trial in the Stormy Daniels hush money case begins with the jury selection process on April 15. More than 500 New Yorkers will report for jury duty to find a dozen worthy Manhattan residents to seat on the jury, a process that could take days — or even weeks — to complete.
During the trial, the New York Times reported that Blanche will use space the former president’s office tower near the courthouse at 40 Wall Street. The outlet called the attorney's decision to rep Trump a "striking career move" given his client's history with lawyers.
Blanche will defend Trump in three of his four criminal cases.
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