After the judge fined former President Donald Trump $9,000 and threatened to put him in jail for posting on social media about breaking his gag order in the New York hush-money lawsuit, Trump claimed that Judge Juan Merchan was “rigging” the 2024 presidential race.
In a ruling on Tuesday, Merchan stated that Trump had broken the gag order nine times, with a $1,000 fine for each infraction. The former president’s remarks against prospective jurors, court employees, lawyers, and judges’ relatives are against the law. Citing remarks that Trump had made regarding Stormy Daniels, Michael Cohen, and the jury pool on his campaign website and social media platform, Truth Social, prosecutors requested that Merchan take action against Trump for breaking the gag order.
Trump posted on Truth Social on Tuesday afternoon, saying, “This judge has taken away my constitutional right to free speech.” “I am the only candidate for president in history to get a gag order. This very conflicted judge is manipulating the entire “trial” and the 2024 presidential election by restricting my freedom of speech. Interference in the Election!
Merchan expressed his displeasure in his ruling, stating that he was unable to impose a fine on Trump exceeding $1,000 for each infraction. He further stated, “Depending on the circumstances, the amount might range from $2,500 to $150,000.”
“This Court must thus assess whether, in some situations, incarceration may be a necessary punishment because it is not veiled with such discretion,” the judge continued.
Merchan, a supporter of Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign against Trump, gave the former president until 2:15 p.m. ET to remove the social media posts that broke the gag order, and Trump complied just in time, according to The Hill.
There are 34 criminal charges against the presumed Republican presidential nominee for fabricating company documents to hide alleged payments of hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels. The former president has refuted claims that he gave Daniels more than $130,000 in 2016.
Alvin Bragg, a Manhattan Democratic District Attorney, is prosecuting the first criminal case against a former U.S. president in connection with hush money. Trump, who is also facing criminal prosecutions in Georgia, Florida, and Washington, D.C., has claimed that he is the subject of political attacks in an election year.
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