Judge in hush money trial threatens Trump with jail after holding him in contempt for violating gag order
www.nbcnews.com
Judge Juan Merchan warned that if Trump continues to violate his orders, he could impose “an incarceratory punishment.”

Prosecutors from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office accused Trump of violating the gag order numerous times since it went into effect.

The judge presiding over Donald Trump’s hush money case on Tuesday held the former president in criminal contempt over a series of posts on Truth Social that he said violated a gag order barring any attacks on jurors and witnesses.

Judge Juan Merchan ruled Trump in contempt for nine violations of his gag order, with a fine of $1,000 for each instance. The order prohibits the former president from “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,” and “public statements about any prospective juror or any juror.”

Merchan had indicated on April 23 that he was not impressed by the arguments from the defense, telling one of Trump’s attorneys that he was “losing all credibility” when he suggested that Trump was exercising caution to comply with the gag order.

  • @WoosterEnglish
    5•19 days ago

    So $9K?

    For the layman, that’s a lot, but for Trump?

    • SuiXi3D
      17•19 days ago

      It’s the legal maximum fine for this, and there are still three other charges that will be discussed this week. It’s very much possible that Trump may see the inside of a jail cell, but that remains to be seen.

      • FaceDeer
        6•19 days ago

        And even though it seems like a tiny slap on Trump’s tiny wrist, it’s still an escalation. So next time Trump flagrantly violates gag orders the judge can escalate more. If there’s an appeal it’ll be important to be able to show the judge didn’t jump straight to the harshest penalties.

    • Chozo
      6•19 days ago

      Let’s be real, that’s probably a lot for Trump right now, too. The man’s broke.

      • androogee (they/she)English
        6•19 days ago

        Lol he’s not paying. Republicans gave him unfettered access to their election campaign funds

        Drain em Donny. Keep going.

      • @Cubes@lemm.ee
        1•19 days ago

        His stake in his “media” company is (nonsensically) still worth billions of dollars right now. He probably won’t be able to cash all of that out if he wanted to, but he is definitely not broke.