‘Hush money’ trial continues with testimony from Stormy Daniels’ former attorney

Before witnesses returned to the stand in former President Donald Trump’s “hush money” trial on Thursday, New York Judge Juan Merchan heard the prosecution’s continuing concerns that Trump has repeatedly violated his gag order.

Trump was fined $9,000 earlier this week by Merchan for speaking out of line with the gag order that limits him from speaking about those involved in the case, including witnesses and jurors. The prosecution encouraged the judge to continue to fine Trump $1,000 for each violation but attorneys are not pressing for jail time.

One of Trump’s attorneys, Susan Necheles, asked for clarity on the gag order and approached the judge with certain articles Trump wished to publish on his social media accounts but needed approval due to some commentary regarding witnesses and other details about the case.

“Prosecutor Christopher Conroy said they would have to review them but found it ‘odd’ they were asking for pre-approval,” according to The New York Times. However, Merchan said he would not approve them and emphasized that Trump should not post the articles if he isn’t sure whether they violate the gag order or not. “I’m not going to give advance rulings,” he said. “There is no ambiguity, I believe, in the order.”

Attorney Keith Davidson takes the stand again

At the heart of the hush money trial accusing Trump of 34 felony charges is a $130,000 payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels through his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, leading up to the 2016 presidential election. Both are future witnesses in the criminal case.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who is overseeing the case, alleges that Trump falsified business records to conceal these payments.

In 2016, attorney Keith Davidson handled the business payments for Daniels as well as former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who wanted to be paid for her story of an alleged 10-month affair she had with Trump.

On Thursday, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass began questioning Davidson regarding the settlement agreement made between Daniels and Trump. Davidson explained that he finalized the deal with Cohen just days before Trump was elected president in 2016.

“He said the deal included a $1 million penalty for any breach, a provision he said was ‘unenforceable,’” per CBS News. “Trump never signed the paperwork, which used pseudonyms for him and Daniels.”

Following the election, Davidson mentioned that he and Dylan Howard, editor of the National Enquirer, had a conversation about their influence on the election’s outcome. Steinglass showed the text exchange to the courtroom.

“There was an understanding … that our activities in some way may have assisted the presidential campaign of Donald Trump,” Davidson told the court, per CBS News.

He also mentioned that Cohen would call him frequently after the election, expressing strong negative feelings toward Trump for not giving him a job in the White House during his presidency.

According to The Associated Press, Cohen received a prison sentence in December 2018, having admitted to multiple offenses, including campaign finance violations and deceiving Congress. He served approximately 13½ months in prison and an additional year and a half under house arrest, which was reduced due to good behavior.

Davidson’s cross-examination

Trump’s attorney, Emil Bove, attempted to frame the payments made as extortion when cross-examining Davidson on Thursday, mentioning his history of negotiating cash-for-information deals with other celebrities, including Lindsay Lohan and Hulk Hogan.

“You were pretty well-versed in getting right up to the line without committing extortion, right?” Bove asked Davidson, according to Reuters. Davidson denied ever committing extortion.

CNN’s Phil Mattingly said the profiles of the prosecution’s witnesses could benefit the defense. “None of this is going to look great. All of this is very unseemly, dealing with people that, perhaps, you might not necessarily want to be going to church with on a weekly basis.

“But that also means the defense has real opportunities,” he added.

Near the end of the testimony, jurors listened to a secret recording of Trump and Cohen talking about the transaction made to silence the alleged affair Trump had with McDougal.

“The existence of the recording, made by Mr. Cohen about two months before the election, was previously known,” according to The New York Times. “But it demonstrated for the jury how Mr. Cohen reported his dealings to Mr. Trump for an agreement that prosecutors have said was part of a conspiracy to help him get elected.”