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Items tagged with: conspiracy
It seems like #Blanche will seek to convince the jury that everything was appropriate & done by the book, not even worthy of notice. That #Cohen was #Trump's lawyer, & he was paid for #legal services. But he'll also seek to distance his client from the matter: "President Trump had nothing to do w/the invoice," he said.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
"I have a spoiler alert: There's nothing wrong w/trying to influence an election," #Blanche says. "It's called democracy." [not the charge. The charge is falsifying business records, the #MensRea is to influence. Besides which, influencing an election through illegal means is duh illegal]
"They put something sinsiter on this idea as if it were a crime," he continued. "You'll learn it's not."
#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#Colangelo encourages #jurors to "tune out the noise" & "focus on the facts" during the course of the #TrumpTrial. He summarizes the evidence again, & says after all the evidence is in, Joshua Steinglass, another prosecutor, will do the closing argument.
He ends by saying there is "only one conclusion: Donald Trump is guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree."
#criminal #law #Trump #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#Colangelo depicted #MichaelCohen as a flawed man who has lied before, saying he lied about the payment to #StormyDaniels initially "to protect his boss."
"This case is about a #criminal #conspiracy & a #coverup," Colangelo says, st the start of his conclusion of his opening statement, adding that at the end of the case, jurors will have no #ReasonableDoubt about #Trump's #guilt.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#Colangelo says #Trump's willingness to go to the trouble of the convoluted repayment scheme to #Cohen “shows just how important it was to him to hide the true nature of Cohen's illegal payment to Ms. Daniels & the overall #election #conspiracy that they had launched."
#MichaelCohen is a key witness. Colangelo explained the litany of problems w/Cohen to get ahead of defense’s attempt to discredit him - something Trump's lawyers can't do, their client won't let them: admit mistakes were made.
Finished w/describing the series of payoffs, #Colangelo details the part the #criminal charges stem from. He is describing the paperwork arrangement to reimburse #MichaelCohen for the #HushMoney payment he made to #StormyDaniels, & how #Trump & #AllenWeisselberg, sought to “disguise” the repayment.
There were chuckles in the courtroom as Colangelo says Trump was a "very frugal businessman" who watched all the spending at his empire.
Reportedly, #Trump pursed his lips at ↑ that & wrote a note which he passed to his atty Todd Blanche, then whispered to atty, Emil Bove.
#Colangelo described a communication from Keith Davidson, the lawyer for #KarenMcDougal, to Dylan Howard, a #NationalEnquirer editor, as it became clear Trump was winning the #election: "What have we done," he said.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#Colangelo says #Pecker will testify that $150k was more than The #NationalEnquirer would typically have paid for such a deal, & that Pecker had trouble being reimbursed. Crucially, Colangelo says, Pecker will testify that he spoke to #Trump about it.
Colangelo mentions an audio #recording #Cohen made between himself & Trump discussing the #McDougal deal.
#criminal #law #Trump #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
Colangelo is now describing the 2nd “#CatchAndKill” deal in question, relating to #KarenMcDougal, a fmr #PlayboyModel who said she had an affair w/ #Trump. #Colangelo says evidence will show that Trump “desperately” didn’t want that info public. “Before the meeting, during the meeting, after the meeting,” Colangelo says, #NationalEnquirer publisher was in touch w/ #MichaelCohen, putting this deal right at Trump’s doorstep.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
Prosecutors to highlight 3 hush-money deals: #Trump & co-conspirators paid off the #PornStar, the #PlayboyModel & the #doorman.
#Colangelo emphasizes it was the 1st time ever that #DavidPecker, #NationalEnquirer, paid for info relating to Trump.
key: every one of these acts involving #HushMoney sprang from the meeting at which the #conspiracy was hatched.
IOW, prosecutors are accusing Trump of using The NE to do for Trump what Trump constantly says others do against him: promote “#FakeNews.”
As #Colangelo says that #Trump orchestrated a #criminal scheme to #corrupt the 2016 presidential election, Trump shook his head.
Trump has attacked Colangelo on Truth Social repeatedly. #StochasticTerrorism
Colangelo has outlined the #crime, & is on to the #GrandJury #indictment of Trump last year. His opening is expected to take >1 hr.
#law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney
#TrumpTrial #criminal #ElectionInterference opening statements have begun.
Matthew #Colangelo, one of the Manhattan DA’s prosecutors, up.
Per Jonah Bromwich:
“Colangelo is known for his writing, but he has very little experience in Manhattan criminal court — I’ve never heard him give an opening before. He begins by telling the jury that #Trump lied “over & over & over” again by disguising business records.”
#Blanche said #Trump put up "a wall" between himself & his company when he became president. We know from the civil #fraud ruling that isn’t true.
Trump always seems to get his lawyers to basically testify about how *successful* the #TrumpOrganization, has been. - Blanche went off on this success narrative for a while.
#criminal #law #TrumpTrial #CatchAndKill #conspiracy #ElectionInterference #HushMoney