MICHAEL Cohen’s testimony is one of the few chances Donald Trump’s lawyers have if they are to exonerate the former president in his silent trial, a former judge has warned.
Brash mogul Trump is on trial and accused of falsifying business records in an attempt to cover up a secret payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
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The Manhattan trial is now in its fourth week before a jury, and Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and mediator, is taking the stand.
John Jones, a former district judge in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, described Cohen as the linchpin of the case.
Cohen’s testimony could be crucial when the jury decides whether or not to convict Trump.
“If Cohen turns out to be a credible witness, the former president will have a problem,” Jones said.
“He can link Trump to what was going on.”
Cohen will be eviscerated during interrogation, according to Jones.
“Cohen’s testimony will be emotional,” he said.
“It will be as vigorous an interrogation as you have ever seen from any defendant.
“They are going to barbecue him during the interrogation.
“Cohen is going to be roasted – he’s a defense lawyer’s dream. They’re going to eviscerate him.
“If they want to establish reasonable doubt and that’s the goal of the defense, then they’re going to have to do that with Cohen.”
Cohen has previously attacked Trump on social media and podcasts.
He previously shared photos of Trump wearing an orange prison suit and joked about the former president being sent to prison.
Judge Juan Merchan even urged Cohen to cut his comments short.
Donald Trump’s legal battles
Donald Trump is the first former president to be charged with state or federal crimes. He has been indicted four times and faces a range of charges. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is juggling court dates with rallies during the campaign. The US Sun analyzes the former president’s current legal battles.
New York Business Records
- Trump is accused of falsifying business records allegedly linked to $130,000 in secret payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
- The payment, executed by Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen, ensured that an embarrassing story would not be published before the 2016 presidential election.
- Trump could face up to four years in prison if convicted.
- Trump can only be pardoned by the governor of New York if he is convicted.
- The trial began on April 15 and is expected to last until May.
Classified Federal Documents
- Trump is accused of mishandling classified documents after leaving office and storing them at his Mar-a-Lago estate.
- He was also accused of obstructing federal agents as they tried to recover the documents.
- Trump is also accused of having shown the trove of files to people who were not supposed to see them.
- Trump faces a range of charges, including allegations that he violated the Espionage Act.
- Trump is also accused of engaging in a conspiracy to obstruct justice.
- He faces 100 years in prison if convicted.
- The case is not expected to go to trial before the November election.
- If Trump wins, he could pardon himself or order the Justice Department to drop the charges because the case was brought at the federal level.
Federal Electoral Subversion
- In August 2023, the Department of Justice charged Trump with the events linked to the January 6 insurrection and the organization of false voter lists.
- Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, conspiracy against rights and obstruction of an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding.
- If convicted, Trump could face a maximum sentence of 55 years in prison.
- A trial date has not yet been decided, but it is unlikely that the case will go to trial before the November elections.
- The Supreme Court is considering arguments over whether Trump is immune from prosecution for some or all of his actions while in the White House.
Election interference in Georgia:
- Trump and 18 others have been accused of trying to change the outcome of the 2020 election in Georgia by pressuring local officials and election workers.
- The district attorney for Fulton County, Georgia, which includes Atlanta, indicted Trump on racketeering charges in August 2023.
- He turned himself in to a Georgia prison and had his mugshot taken.
- A trial is not expected to take place before the November elections.
- Trump cannot pardon himself if convicted because the charges were brought at the state level.
- In Georgia, only a board appointed by the governor can approve pardons.
Jones believes Cohen’s comment does not help the prosecution’s goal of building a strong enough case to influence the jury to convict the former president.
Cohen taking the stand represents a potential opening for the Trump team to explore, according to Jones.
“The prosecution cannot control Cohen. He is your witness, but not your client,” he said.
“Cohen, for a defense attorney, is a target-rich environment.
“When he makes these statements, they are out there.
“When he posted about Trump in the orange prison uniform, it gave the defense the opportunity to say, ‘You hate donald trump.’
“That’s definitely to Trump’s advantage, because if you’re the prosecutor, you don’t want him to say anything.”
VERIFIED PAST
Jones believes Trump’s defense will unleash a parade of horrible things in an attempt to create an image of Cohen as someone who cannot be trusted.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance law.
He alleged that Trump encouraged him to make the payment to Daniels.
In December 2018, he was sentenced to three years in prison on charges of tax evasion, making false statements and campaign finance violations.
They are going to barbecue [Cohen] in interrogation.
John Jones
Cohen has already admitted to lying under oath.
He also admitted to lying to Congress in 2017 regarding a Trump Organization project in Moscow.
He also admitted to lying about violating tax laws.
Cohen now maintains that he did not commit this crime.
Trump’s defense team has already claimed that Cohen is obsessed with winning over the former president.
Cohen executed the payment to Daniels, but prosecutors say he was reimbursed fraudulently.
They claim Trump described the payment as legal expenses.
STORMY’S TESTIMONY
Cohen must recall how the quiet plan was negotiated and reimbursed by Trump.
Cohen’s testimony comes just days after the New York court heard details of Daniels and Trump’s alleged affair.
Daniels was questioned by Trump’s lawyers, who accused her of fabricating false sexual stories.
“O sex in the movies it’s very real, just like what happened to me in that room,” said the adult film star clapped back.
Daniels was paid $130,000 by Cohen to keep quiet about the alleged affair.
Trump and Daniels met at a golf tournament in 2006 while she was working the event to promote porn studio Wicked Pictures.
When [Cohen] posted about Trump in the orange prison uniform, gives the defense the opportunity to say, ‘You hate Donald Trump.’
John Jones
The former president denies that the two had sex.
Earlier this month, the court heard a recording that allegedly involved Trump and Cohen discussing a plan to bribe Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Trump also denies having an affair with McDougal.
Cohen discussed an apparent payment plan with Allen Weisselberg, the former CFO of the Trump Organization, according to the recording.
“So how much do we have to pay for this?” Trump reportedly asked, according to the audio.
McDougal was paid $150,000 to keep quiet.
Trump’s team reportedly feared the possible political implications if News of the alleged affair was leaked in the run-up to the 2016 presidential elections.
Prosecutors charged Trump with a series of criminal charges.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
WILL TRUMP TESTIFY?
The prosecution could have its case closed by the end of the week.
Late last week, prosecutors revealed that another witness could testify after Cohen.
The verdict is expected to be released weeks or months before Americans go to the polls.
It is not yet known whether Trump will take a stand in his defense.
Trump had previously said he would testify, but it is unclear whether he will fulfill his promise.
Lawyers have already told The US Sun that Trump would go against the convention if he took a stand.
Gregory Germain, a legal expert at Syracuse University, alluded to the risks such a measure would have.
“I would be very scared if I were a lawyer to put Donald Trump on the stand,” he said.
Trump could face up to four years in prison if convicted in this case.
And he cannot receive a presidential pardon from Joe Biden if he is convicted.
This is because the charges were issued at the state level.
Trump faces three other criminal cases in the run-up to the November elections.
He was accused of mishandling a collection of confidential documents at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, and was indicted for the events linked to the Capitol insurrection on January 6, 2021.
He was also accused of trying to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.
Georgia was one of the swing states that Trump lost to Biden.
Trial dates have not yet been set and it is unknown whether there will be a decision in both cases before Americans go to the polls.
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