NEW YORK (AP) — Manhattan prosecutors won't be penalized for a last-minute document dump that caused former President Donald Trump’s hush money criminal trial to start later than scheduled, a judge ruled Thursday.
Judge Juan M. Merchan rejected the defense’s request that prosecutors be sanctioned for a deluge of nearly 200,000 pages of evidence just weeks before the trial‘s scheduled start. The documents were from a previous federal investigation into the matter.
Merchan agreed to delay the start of the trial from March 25 to April 15 to allow the former president’s lawyers to review the material. But at a hearing in March, he rejected their claim that the case had been tainted by prosecutorial misconduct, and denied their bid to delay the case longer, throw it out entirely or bar key prosecution witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels from testifying.
In a written ruling issued Thursday, Merchan reiterated that Trump didn't suffer any prejudice from the document dump because he and his lawyers were “given a reasonable amount of time to prepare and respond to the material.”
Merchan said he reached the conclusion after reviewing written submissions by both sides, including timelines they provided to him chronicling the disclosure of evidence, as well arguments and clarifications that were made at the March 25 hearing on the issue.
The Manhattan district attorney's office declined comment on the ruling. A message seeking comment was left with Trump’s lawyers.
After testimony from 22 witnesses over the last month, including Cohen and Daniels, the first criminal trial of a former president is slated to move to closing arguments next Tuesday, with jury deliberations expected to follow as early as Wednesday.
Trump’s lawyers had accused Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office of intentionally failing to pursue evidence from the 2018 federal investigation, which sent Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen to prison.
They contended prosecutors working under Bragg, a Democrat, did so to gain an unfair advantage in the case and harm Trump’s election chances. Cohen, now a vocal Trump critic, was a key prosecution witness against his ex-boss.
At the March 25 hearing, Merchan said the DA’s office had no duty to collect evidence from the federal investigation, nor was the U.S. attorney’s office required to volunteer the documents. What transpired was a “far cry” from Manhattan prosecutors “injecting themselves in the process and vehemently and aggressively trying to obstruct your ability to get documentation,” the judge said.
“It’s just not what happened,” Merchan said.
The DA’s office denied wrongdoing and blamed Trump’s lawyers for waiting until Jan. 18 to subpoena the records from the U.S. attorney’s office — a mere nine weeks before the trial was originally supposed to start. Merchan told defense lawyers they should have acted sooner if they believed they didn’t have all the records they wanted.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to charges that he falsified business records by falsely logging payments to Cohen, then his personal lawyer, as legal fees in his company’s books when they were reimbursements for a $130,000 hush money payment he made to Daniels. Manhattan prosecutors say Trump did it as part of an effort to protect his 2016 campaign by burying what he says were false stories of extramarital sex.
Trump’s lawyers say the payments to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses, not cover-up checks. Trump denies having sex with Daniels.
Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to federal campaign finance violations related to the Daniels payoff. He said Trump directed him to arrange it, and federal prosecutors indicated they believed him, but Trump was never charged.
In this courtroom sketch, former President Donald Trump's defense attorney Emil Bove, left, and assistant district attorney Matthew Colangelo, right, argue various points on the jury charge to Judge Juan Merchan, Tuesday, May 21, 2024, in Manhattan criminal court in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Belgium and Kevin De Bruyne face Slovakia to start their European Championship program on Monday in Group E. Also in the group are Romania and Ukraine. Kickoff in Frankfurt is at 6 p.m. local time (1600 GMT). Here’s what to know about the match.
— There is a strong Italian influence on the game. Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona is Italian, and was the interim coach since February at Napoli where he had been an assistant to Mauricio Sarri. Belgium’s 38-year-old coach Domenico Tedesco was born in Italy though is a citizen of Germany having grown up there and considers himself more a product of its soccer culture.
— Slovakia is at its third straight Euro as an independent nation, all since the tournament was expanded to 24 teams. Slovakia reached the round of 16 in 2016 losing 3-0 to Germany. As half of the former Czechoslovakia it won the 1976 title.
— Belgium was the beaten finalist in 1980, losing to West Germany.
— The teams never met in a competitive game and last played a friendly against each other 11 years ago. A Belgium team featuring a 21-year-old De Bruyne beat Slovakia 2-1 in Brugge.
— Belgium left arguably the world’s best goalkeeper at home. That’s despite Thibaut Courtois proving his fitness helping Real Madrid win the Champions League final. Courtois has been in dispute with Tedesco reportedly after not getting the captaincy for a game last year.
— Belgium has injuries in defense with doubts over Axel Witsel. Veteran Jan Vertonghen and Arthur Theate have trained enough to be available for selection. Zeno Debast, just 20, and Maxim De Cuyper could get their chance.
— Slovakia’s lineup could include Peter Pekarík and Juraj Kucka. At age 37 they are Slovakia’s oldest ever players. They also are the last remaining members of the 2010 World Cup squad that beat and eliminated defending champion Italy in the group stage.
— Belgium is still ranked No. 3 by FIFA despite not advancing out of its group at the 2022 World Cup. Belgium has a seven-year run in the top five, including atop the ranking from 2018 through 2021. Slovakia is No. 48.
— Romelu Lukaku’s record 85 goals for Belgium, aged just 31, is more than the top three Slovakia scorers combined since it became an independent soccer nation in 1994. Marek Hamsik, who retired last year and is now an assistant coach, leads with 26.
— Belgium captain De Bruyne made his 100th appearance for the Red Devils last week, scoring in a 2-0 warmup win against Montenegro.
— Slovakia gave up the fastest goal in the history of men's international soccer in March. It took just six seconds for Austria's Christoph Baumgartner to dribble the ball direct from the center spot and shoot past goalkeeper Martin Dubravka.
— “Belgium has a lot of fantastic individuals. Take De Bruyne, (Jérémy) Doku, Lukaku, (Leandro) Trossard, all of them are huge players. Belgium has two or three top players playing in top clubs in each position.” — Slovakia midfielder Stanislav Lobotka
— “Since the 2022 World Cup, he has had to build a completely new team with a lot of younger players, so everything had to be adjusted to his philosophy of playing.” — Kevin De Bruyne on coach Domenico Tedesco
AP Euro 2024: https://apnews.com/hub/euro-2024
Belgium's Kevin De Bruyne and De Bruyne's wife Michelle Lacroix and their children Mason Milian, Rome and Suri pictured at the start of the international friendly soccer match between Belgium and Montenegro at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Wednesday, June 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
Belgium's coach Domenico Tedesco waits for the start of the international friendly soccer match between Belgium and Luxembourg at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Saturday, June 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
FILE - Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona claps his hands during the Euro 2024 group J qualifying soccer match between Portugal and Slovakia at the Dragao stadium in Porto, Portugal, on Oct. 13, 2023. Slovakia coach Francesco Calzona presented on Friday a combination of young and experienced players in his squad for the European Championship. The Italian said that the only way of succeeding for his 26-man squad at the tournament in Germany is to rely on teamwork. (AP Photo/Luis Vieira, File)
Belgium's Romelu Lukaku, right, celebrates with Belgium's Amadou Onana after scoring his side's second goal during the international friendly soccer match between Belgium and Luxembourg at the King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, Saturday, June 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
FILE - Belgium's Kevin De Bruyne celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the international friendly soccer match between Germany and Belgium in Cologne, Germany, Tuesday March 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)
