Donald Trump found in criminal contempt for 9 gag order violations, Judge Juan Merchan rules

Judge Juan Merchan held former president Donald Trump in criminal contempt for nine gag order violations, issuing a $9,000 fine and a warning that jail time is still possible for future punishment.

In Trump's hush money trial, Merchan had issued a gag order prohibiting Trump from publicly commenting on the participation of potential witnesses, court staff, prosecutors and family members of the court.

In the first week of the trial, prosecutors told Merchan that Trump had violated the order a total of 10 times with posts on Truth Social and Trump's campaign website.

"This Court's Expanded Order is lawful and unambiguous," Merchan wrote in his decision. "Defendant violated the Order by making social media posts about known witnesses pertaining to their participation in this criminal proceeding and by making public statements about jurors in this criminal proceeding."

Trump must pay the fine by Friday evening and was also ordered to take the posts down by 2:15 p.m. Tuesday. It is the second time Trump has been hit with penalties for violating a gag order: Judge Arthur Engoron previously fined Trump $15,000 in the civil fraud trial.

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Judge Merchan finds 9 of 10 posts on Truth Social, campaign website violate gag order

On April 15, the first day of the trial, Prosecutor Christopher Conroy introduced three social media posts as punishable gag order violations by:

• Thanking Michael Avenatti, a former lawyer for Stormy Daniels who was imprisoned for stealing from her, for a statement calling it “outrageous” that potential witnesses Michael Cohen and Daniels can be interviewed on television but Trump isn’t allowed to respond. Trump said the statement revealed “the truth about two sleaze bags.”

• Posting a photograph of a 2018 Daniels statement denying she had sex with Trump.

• Asking whether “disgraced attorney and felon Michael Cohen been prosecuted for LYING?”

On April 18, prosecutors said Trump violated the order seven more times with five posts on Truth Social and two posts on Trump's campaign website between April 15 and April 17, according to the decision.

Some of the alleged new violations involve former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, who could be a key witness in the case. Another was a post by Trump on Truth Social appearing to quote Fox News host Jesse Watters, stating: “They are catching undercover Liberal Activists lying to the Judge in order to get on the Trump Jury."

Judge Merchan found Trump in violated the order for nine of the posts. His April 10 post thanking Avenatti was the exception as it may have been in response to a "political attack," a carve out in the gag order that allows Trump to respond.

Judge Merchan still has several gag order violations to rule on

In the April 23 hearing over the first 10 social media posts, prosecutors said Trump had violated the gag order again the day prior. Trump told reporters outside the courtroom that prosecution witness Michael Cohen "got caught lying, pure lying" in a previous trial.

Before witness David Pecker, a former National Enquirer executive, re-took the stand on April 25, prosecutors alleged another four violations.

Prosecutor Christopher Conroy raised multiple comments by Trump to the press, including calling Cohen a "convicted liar" who "did some pretty bad things, I guess."

Conroy also presented Trump's comments on Pecker:

"David's been very nice," Trump said, according to Conroy. "This is a message to Pecker: Be nice," Trump allegedly said.

The hearing for at least four of those gag order violations will be held Thursday morning.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump fined in contempt ruling, threatened with jail over gag order