Trump Documents

How to spin the Hush Money trial

by Dave

It’s Biden Show Trial. That was the latest spin from Alina Habba, Donald Trump’s legal spokesperson, regularly appearing on Fox News stations. The last time I heard her, she was on Sean Hannity’s show, and saying Donald Trump is being hauled into court, on exactly the same charges as in his business fraud case and the defamation case against E. Jean Carroll (two trials). Of course, the charges against Trump was in civil court, and completely different. But in each case, Trump lost and has posted bond for part of the money he owes, while these cases are being appealed.

The criminal case is being prosecuted by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who has avoided making any public statement or even attending the court sessions. I take this as a sign of confidence that he will win this case. The federal government nor the Department of Justice is not involved in this case.

What DA Bragg and his team are doing, is making absolutely sure, the jury can put the pieces together, with the testimony they have heard and the documents submitted into evidence. It is likely to go to the jury next Thursday. The verdict of the jury should be respected, as they listened to all testimony in court.

Sean Hannity, Fox News commentator made a strange comment, that this was Representative Adam Schiff’s show trial. That’s pretty odd- but while we are at inventing conspiracy theories, why not pull in George Soros, Jeff Bezos or Bill Gates.

I found an even more bizarre comment from Representative Maria Salazar (I’m in her district) that this trial is like something that occurs in socialist countries. Her comments:

She proceeded to emphasize in both English and later in Spanish again how Hispanics are the largest and “most important” minority in the country. “This is a political circus that is only seen in Cuba, in Venezuela and Nicaragua,” she said. “It is a shame.” She emphasized the importance of fighting at the ballot box and making sure political persecution doesn’t continue.“ That’s why I’m telling to you Hispanics, wake up! What is happening is Marxism and we came to this country to not have this,” she said.

In autocratic governments, which I include Iran, Russia, China, Cuba and Venezuela, the country’s elites are above the law. In autocracies, the police would never raid the office of Michael Cohen, so both Cohen and Trump would never be charged. They would never search Joe Biden’s home or have a Special Counsel assign to investigate him, while he was president. Rep. Maria Salazar is campaigning on pretty stale anti-communist rhetoric.

In fact, in an autocratic government, the news media can be silenced or is run by the government. In a democracy, everyone is subject to the same laws and has the right to a fair trial. So, DA Alvin Bragg is doing what prosecutors are doing everyday enforcing the law, and not engaging in political persecution. That’s how democracies work.

The political circus continues, more on social media than in the courthouse. The latest one, was that the raid at Trump’s residence in Mar-a-Lago was intended to be an assassination attempt on Trump, because part of the instructions given to FBI agents, is the right to use deadly force. It was quickly dismissed when the standard instructions are read in full, which state that FBI agents may only use deadly force to protect themselves.

Donald Trump has already protested the entire trial, as a way to prevent him from campaigning. Court trials are never convenient to defendants. He will have his supporters already, to once again, denounce the Manhattan attorney’s office, as simply an extension of the federal courts, the Department of Justice, the FBI, and of course Joe Biden. You can pretty much add to the list, Nicolas Maduro and

Usually, defendants’ attorneys claim that the prosecution case will be completely destroyed once they can present the evidence that exonerates their client. The defense did put one witness on the stand, Robert Costello, who really could not refute the charges against Trump. His testimony may have helped rather than hurt the prosecution case, as Costello, was working for Rudy Giuliani, who has his own legal problems.

Most courtroom observers believe the case against Trump is strong. The court will reconvene Tuesday for closing arguments. They can be long, as each side will be very well prepared to summarize the case, with well chosen images of the most compelling evidence. Then, the judge will instruct the jury on the law and what they must decide.

If found guilty, Trump has the right to appeal the decision. Of course he will using campaign donations. And Trump will continue to play the victim of repression or political prosecution.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Finally, the Hush Money case begins this Monday

by Dave

Opening arguments lay out the basics of the case for the jury from both the prosecution and defense side. Of course, from the defense side, Trump is innocent. The jury will hear two months of evidence and then decide.

So, everyone has their job. The judge, prosecutors and defense lawyers know their job. But the jury doesn’t unless they have served on a jury before. It is basically weird. They are the deciders, but they can’t solve this problem like any others. They can’t go into Google. They can’t talk it over with the others in the jury. They can’t talk to their spouse or neighbors. Lots of can nots.

And they are not going to know what laws Trump is accused of breaking until the very end. My experience on juries, is in general, that the people act very conscientiously, they respect each other, and obey the orders of the judge. Some are more engaged than others, but they all play by the rules.

So, the system is working. Hardly headline news, but it should be. The delay tactics of Trump failed. Every defendant has a right to a speedy trial so they can clear their names. In this case, Trump wants just the opposite, namely indefinite postponements. If he can slow down this trial, the ones that follow, particularly the Classified Documents case, will also get pushed back.

Judge Cannon, in the Classified Documents case, has now ruled against Trump on a motion to dismiss. Apparently, there are many more motions pending, and she’ll have to rule on these soon. If she can do this expeditiously, then just perhaps in July, the documents case can begin. Trump’s team is trying to use the Hush Money case, and the need for his lawyers in NY, to further push back the Document case. No start date has been scheduled.

The Jan 6 case is awaiting a decision on the immunity claim by Trump. Oral arguments will be held in the Supreme Court. This will be interesting, because the appellate court ruled against him, and legal experts do not expect this will go well for Trump on Thursday.

Court reporters are will get no break, as they go from Manhattan, NY to Ft. Pierce, FL (Documents Case), Atlanta, GA (Election Conspiracy Case) and Washington, DC (Jan 6 election interference case).

Stay tuned,

Dave

Hush Money Trial to begin, other court case issues to be resolved slowly

by Dave

On April 15, the Hush Money case begins. Finally Trump’s delay schemes got him only an extra 20 days. I’m glad. Could end in mid June. The judge will not put up with other ways to delay this case. My prediction – Trump will be sentenced to jail time, but this will be stayed pending his appeal. The other cases have definitely gotten bogged down.

The Supreme Court knows they control the timing of the federal January 6 trial with the presidential immunity case and they don’t seem anxious to fast track this case. The court traditionally releases the most controversial decision at the end of the term, so it could be decided from June to early July. Almost every legal expert expects Trump to lose on this one.

Trump lawyers are filing dozens of pre-trial motions in the Classified Documents case. The Special Counsel suggested a July start date, while Trump’s team hopes to push this off to next year, obviously in hopes that Trump would win the Presidency. The Special Counsel is especially concerned that Judge Cannon will allow the list of witnesses to be made public before trial. Also they object to needless hearings related to dismissal of the case.

They [Trump’s lawyers] want the judge to hold a hearing to force the government to produce evidence of what they say is a “selective and vindictive” prosecution. Prosecutors say no such evidence exists and that it would be unprecedented to grant a hearing in the matter.

See link: Trump’s trial over classified documents in Florida could start as soon as this summer

Many legal experts, are critical of Judge Cannon’s decisions, saying they are not legally sound and result in complicating and delaying the trial. See link below:

Salon: “Very, very troubling”: Ex-judges worry Judge Cannon’s pro-Trump rulings “clearly suggest bias”

The Special Counsel can appeal a wrong decision, but this can take months.

There are both legal and practical aspects in some court decisions. I can understand the practical aspects a lot easier. I stated from a practical perspective, the voters decide elections, not the courts. So, I was glad the Supreme Court decided in Trump’s favor on the disqualification case.

The second one happened yesterday, with the bond in the civil business fraud case being lowered to 175 million from 464 million dollars, and giving Trump an extra 10 days to secure the bond. The appellate court did not explain their reasoning, but since the entire case is under review by the appellate court, it seemed unnecessary to force liquidation of Trump’s assets at this point. I was glad because Trump could not whine about how they [the DA’s office] were stealing his hotels.

So, New York Appellate Court was nice to Trump on the bond issue. Didn’t help, as he made some comments about how terrible NY was treating him, as follows:

Fact check: Trump tells ‘mind-bogglingly nonsensical’ story about the New York Stock Exchange

Now, once the Appellate Court rules, then it is a new ball game. Trump must pay up or his assets can be liquidated. And if it comes to this, it is going to be slow and messy.

The Georgia case is also going slow, as Judge McAfee tossed out 6 charges, as not being fully explained in legal terms. DA Willis can file briefs to get the charges restored. No trial date has been scheduled.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump Legal Issues Update including Calendar Wars

by Dave

The big question is what comes after the Hush Money case. I call this “calendar wars.” I really tried to adhere to the axiom, “Everything should be made as simple as possible but not simpler” often attributed to Einstein.

— Calendar Wars

The Hush Money trial starts March 25 and may go through mid-May, which would allow another criminal trial to begin. It is unclear which one – Documents or Jan 6 case. Trump’s team would like both delayed to post-November, but they could opt to accept a pre-election start date for the Documents case so they can push the more damaging Jan 6 case to after the election. For political purposes, always the less embarrassing case goes first. The Jan 6 case could be put on hold by the Supreme Court.

It is also been suggested by commentators that Judge Cannon might be more lenient to Trump’s delaying tactics with frivolous motions than Judge Chutkan. It looks hopeless that the Georgia trial case will start prior to 2025. But, we shall see.

Hush Money Case: There will be a lot of commentary connected with this trial. Republicans will certainly down play this case, claiming it should be a misdemeanor charge, rather than a felony.

Prosecutors have asked Judge Juan Merchan to order a partial gag order barring Trump from making or directing others to make public statements about potential witnesses, prospective jurors and members of the prosecution team and their families other than District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Trump can blast away at DA Bragg all he wants and has already made a lot of false statements. See link below:

CNN Fact check: Trump makes false and evidence-free claims at Manhattan courthouse

DA Alvin Bragg has described the case in terms of 2016 election interference, which I believe is correct. The secret payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal were done, so his election prospects wouldn’t be hurt by knowledge of these affairs. His reported sexual encounter with Stormy Daniels (Stefanie Clifford) was just one time. He suggested to her, that she could be on his show, “Celebrity Apprentice” but this never happened. She claims he tried to keep the affair alive but she rejected this. The affair with Karen McDougal lasted 9 months.

There has been a lot of contentious issues of who should be allowed to testify and what evidence is material to this case. Donald Trump will absolutely appeal any conviction and these pre-trial motions will be a part of his appeal. See link:

Link: Trump seeks to block Stormy Daniels, Michael Cohen from testifying at NY hush money trial

Jan 6 Case: Trump’s ex-presidential immunity case is now pending in the Supreme Court. What his lawyers want, is to put a hold on the start of the January 6 election obstruction trial. The Special Counsel urges the Supreme Court to either allow the Appellate court ruling to stand, and begin trial as soon as possible or to hear the case on a highly expediated schedule.

Most experts predict that Trump is destined to lose the case, so the issue is whether he can delay it to after the election. So far, no decision. Conservatives on the bench can hand Trump a victory, simply by taking up the case, and then pushing it to the next term to be decided. The three liberals probably have heard enough on this subject, and would be ready to rule against Trump immediately.

Documents case: Pre-trial motions keep going back and forth. Judge Cannon ordered documents unsealed so Trump’s team could know potential witnesses that could be called by the prosecution. Smith request a reconsideration of the order, and he may file an appeal if Cannon doesn’t reverse herself. Legal experts have generally sided with the prosecution, as it gives Trump’s team time to find ways of intimidating witnesses. Trump is well known for his attacks on just about everyone involved in a case against him.

Trump also filed a lengthy “motion to dismiss” brief, and Cannon wants separate briefs for each issue. The Rolling Stone’s lyric, “Makes a grown man cry” is probably resonating in the Smith’s office as Judge Cannon seems reluctant to rule against Trump. Presidential immunity is part of the motion to dismiss, and I’m thinking it is the quickest way to put the whole trial on hold. As discussed in “Calendar Wars” a lengthy hold on the Documents case could disadvantage Trump, as the more damaging January 6 case becomes the likely successor to the Hush Money case.

Judge Cannon has scheduled a hearing on March 1 to review delays in the trial date. The Special Counsel would like the trial to begin on May 20, 2024, but legal experts suggest this date is unrealistic.

Link: The Trump Docket: Jack Smith and Mar-a-Lago judge set for major showdown over protecting witnesses in documents case

Georgia Election Interference Case: We will know soon if DA Fani Willis affair with Nathan Wade will end in her disqualification. The entire conspiracy case disappears at this point! Just as I was ready to post this, Judge McAfee ordered Terrence Bradley, who was Nathan Wade’s partner and divorce lawyer, to answer additional questions, ruling that attorney-client privileges do not extend as far as he allowed before in the hearing.

Michael Roman and several other co-defendants in Trump’s election case are seeking Willis’ disqualification from the case on the grounds that she benefited financially from a “personal, romantic relationship” with Wade, who she hired for the case.

Judge has scheduled a hearing on March 1 on the Willis/Wade romance. I am hoping this does not derail the case.

No date has been set for conspiracy trial. It will be televised and a bit of a circus with all the lawyers defending 15 defendants. For this reason, I believe the Jan 6 federal case is, with the sole focus on obstruction of justice and interference in election proceedings by Trump, is still the most damaging. If Trump gets re-elected, the January 6 case will be sure be dismissed but the Georgia case will continue.

This sums up the four criminal cases. In related cases, Trump needs to come up with bond for the civil cases, which have been appealed. This is a very fluid story of what is possible. There’s the Colorado Disqualification case in the Supreme Court, which may rule in Trump’s favor. I would like this, as voters not judges, need to decide elections.

Stay tuned,

Dave

2024 The year of historical trials and court decisions

by Dave

Some people try to associate court trials with other things they are familiar with and it is usually a disaster. Court cases are not like the movies. They can go on for months. It is also not a ballgame. It doesn’t end in nine innings.. Decisions are appealed.

The public knows who they like and dislike, and believes the accused should either be set free or in jail for the rest of their lives. The Republican politicians went years claiming Hillary Clinton had committed all sorts of crimes. But, finally, one Democrat has been charged with profiting from his high position, Senator Bob Menendez. His wife has also been charged. 

Hunter Biden and Steve Bannon will go on trial unless either can cut a plea agreement. These trials will be headline news, because of their close association with President Biden and Donald Trump. In both cases, there has been zero evidence these actions involved either Biden or Trump. Both will have the best lawyers money can buy, but the evidence against them will make or break their cases.

And then of course there is Trump and his two civil cases and four criminal ones. I have written extensively about this and there are many Trump legal problems trackers out there. The final conclusion of the civil case against Trump and his organization for the overvaluation of properties will end quietly, as the judge will simply file the judgment in late January and Trump will appeal. 

The disqualification issue must be decided by the Supreme Court. This case and the immunity case will be historical landmark cases. I think only 3 of the 4 criminal cases will likely be tried in 2024, with the Georgia conspiracy case, starting either late 2024 or early 2025. The Supreme Court has a number of highly contentious cases, of which I’ve commented on the abortion pill.

An independent judicial system is one. of the cherished rights of all Americans. If someone has been unjustly accused, the appropriate place to seek justice is the courtroom, not on social media or cable news stations.

So in sum, the system is working as it is intended. The appeal process is an additional check that ensures convictions are in accordance with the law and the rights of individuals are protected.  

Republican members of Congress should not be involved in any of these cases. They should not attempt to tilt the balance of justice against Hunter Biden or in favor of Donald Trump. By their meddling in trials, through their power to subpoena, they are hindering our system of justice.

I fear a re-election of Donald Trump and his disrespect for the judiciary will severely damage our judiciary system. His use of pardons for political purposes would be an attack on the sacred right of justice for all, that comes from  a conscientious and independent judiciary system. Might makes right approach whether by Congress or the President brings us one step closer to tyranny.

What will work, is an informed public who understands the judiciary has a very independent role vital to our system of government. 

Wishing the best of all in 2024,

Dave,

Trump’s Legal Problems – October 4, 2023

by Dave

Trump showed up for part of the third day of the New York State civil trial. He is now under a gag order not to make disparaging comments about court employees or their families. I predict two big former employees will be testifying next week, first Allen Weiselberg, who was Trump’s Chief Financial Officer, and Michael Cohen, who was Trump’s attorney.

Trump has blasted the whole case as unfair, to put it mildly, without a jury to evaluate all the facts. However, legal experts have laid the blame, partly on Trump’s lawyers, who did not object a non-jury trial.

See Link: “Mind-blowing”: Legal experts warn that lawyer’s incredible “screw-up” is “very ominous” for Trump

I’m not sure they would have succeeded, because they would have to argue for special circumstances exist to allow for a jury trial.

Trump’s attorney Alina Habba adds a bit of drama, but she is not winning any points with the judge:

You Tube video (4.4 minutes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLS80Vxe59U . Fallon Cousins is not a lawyer, but a progressive commentator.

Will Trump testify? He said he wants to, but his lawyers will likely suggest to him that he has more to lose than gain. If he testifies and makes false statements, he can be charged with perjury.

In January, E. Jean Carroll defamation case II will begin. Carroll is seeking an additional 10 million dollars in her suit.

Now on to the heavy hitters- the criminal cases which are Hush Money, Georgia Conspiracy, Classified Documents and January 6 Federal Case, with prosecutors Bragg, Willis, Smith and Smith, respectively.

Hush Money Case: Trump’s lawyers filed for a motion to dismiss of all charges (summary judgement). The case is scheduled for trial in March 2024 in Manhattan. I believe the motion to dismiss will fail.

Georgia Conspiracy: Recent ruling, favorable to the prosecution, have help this case. Both Sidney Powell and Ken Cheseboro have requested a speedy trial. The judge set their trial to begin on October 23, 2023. What they did not want, was to be tried together, and they lost their bids for separate trials.

Others have tried unsuccessfully to have their cases moved to federal court. It was widely anticipated that Donald Trump would also file for removal to federal court. Trump did not file for removal and decided to remain with the others in Georgia.

Then, prosecutors have accepted a plea deal for Scott Hall, one of the defendants, in exchange for his testimony, which likely will be very damaging to Sidney Powell’s case. Additional defendants might to get similar plea deals, which allow them to avoid jail time. Legal experts consider that AG Willis just has too many defendants to try at the same time, so it is to her advantage to offer plea deals, if the defendants can help her case. So, as I count, the large group of conspirators, is now down to 16, down from 19 before.

Classified Documents: Trial to begin May 2024. Judge will have to make some contentious rulings on rules regarding the inspection of classified documents. With the back and forth of motions, this could impact the trial start date. Trump’s lawyers want this case to be held after the presidential elections, and prosecutors are insisting on the May 2024 start date. At issue are rules established in the Classified Information Procedures Act or CIPA. The judge might just push back the start date.

Federal January 6 Case: Trial date to begin March 4, 2024. Trump lost in a bid to delay until April 2026. Just in case you’ve forgotten the charges: The special counsel indictment explained Trump was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering, conspiracy against the rights of citizens, and obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. This will be televised, and the timing, just before Superbowl couldn’t be worse.

After Trump attacked the courts and prosecutors, Judge Chutkan ordered a partial gag order, limiting what Trump could say about prosecutors, potential witnesses and others. Trump’s lawyers argued against this, and a hearing is set for October 16. Gag orders for both prosecutors and defendants are necessary at times, particularly so jurors and witnesses are not inadvertently intimidated by what is said in public.

That’s a wrap. I forgot Steve Bannon “Build the Wall” fraud case starts in May 28, 2024 in Manhattan, so court reporters will go back to Judge Juan Merchan courtroom, following the Hush Money case. Bannon was pardoned by Trump but they were able to file criminal charges against him under NY State law.

And of course, Rudy Giuliani’s lawsuit against Joe Biden for referring to him as a Russian pawn. Wasn’t Rudy Giuliani practically broke? Don’t think this one has legs.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump’s Cases: Just the facts

by Dave

On the right side of my site, I have created a separate page on the four criminal indictments of Donald Trump. It is very short. I have included the best links I could find tracking these cases. If I stick with just the court rulings, it makes things a lot shorter. Sort of like reporting the final score of a football game, and not the action on the field.

The one getting the most attention is the Georgia election interference case with 19 defendants. It is referred to as the Georgia inquiry case, Fulton County case or the Fani Willis case. All defendants have pleaded not guilty, had their mug shots taken, and posted bond.

The 19 defendants are not speaking with one voice. Fani Willis wanted a start date in March 2024, while Trump wants more time. The judge has not yet decided. But, one defendant, Kenneth Chesebro, asked for a start date of October 23, 2023 and the judge apparently accepted this date. Sidney Powell filed a similar motion. The New York Times reported that they learned from John Eastman’s lawyers, that he also may opt for an early start date.

Not in Fulton County, please! Five defendants (Meadows, Clark, Shafer, Still and Latham) want “removal” to federal court. New York Times reports that Trump will also likely request removal to federal court. The case will still be held in Georgia, but it will be moved outside of Fulton County, which is heavily Democratic. If it is in federal court, Meadows and Clark will likely argue that they should not be tried at all, because they have immunity, as they were federal government employees performing their duties to the president.

So, the Georgia case is getting messy. A hearing has been set for August 28, to discuss these issues. The Judge’s focus will be on ensuring a fair trial, with sufficient time for defendants to prepare their defense and have an unbiased jury.

And Judge Chutkan in Washington, has set a hearing for August 28 to discuss the start date for the January 6 case. Jack Smith wants January 2, 2024 while Trump’s lawyers want April 2026. Big difference.

Four cases, Hush Money, Jan 6, Georgia and the Documents case are all going forward. Wheel of justice turn slowly.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump’s legal problems – Quick summary

by Dave

It’s 4+2, which stands for 4 criminal cases and 2 civil cases. They are well summarized in the link below:

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/what-are-the-legal-cases-against-donald-trump.html

Two simple principles must be understood: (1) No one is above the law and (2) Trump’s legal problems are of his own making.

Billionaire Trump will use campaign donations to pay for his legal expense. This is the height of audacity. He will claim he is the victim and the Biden administration is trying to lock him up so he can’t run.

The four criminal cases will take place in Florida, Georgia, NY and Washington DC. Can you name them and give their status?

They are the Mar-a-Lago Documents case in Florida, Election Tampering case in Georgia, Stormy Daniels hush money in NY, and Jan 6 and 2020 election aftermath in Washington DC.

Now, the status as of July 25, 2023: Documents case – trial scheduled for May 20, 2024, Georgia Election Tampering – indictment announcement likely between now and September 1, 2023, Stormy Daniels case- trial scheduled for March 25, 2024, Jan 6 and election aftermath, indictments likely very soon.

Ok for extra credit, match the prosecutor (Smith, Bragg and Willis) to each case.

The two civil cases are summarized in the link above. October 24, 2023 Trump goes on trial for business fraud in NYC and then on January 15, 2024, a trial is scheduled for the second defamation case against E. Jean Carroll. He does not have to appear for either trial.

Criminal cases can result in jail time. So, will Donald Trump do time? If found guilty, his lawyers will be fighting in court to keep him from ever serving time. Convicts have the right to be incarcerated in a place that guarantees their well-being. A lot is up to the judge in the case. It will not be like the movies. No one will parade Donald Trump in front of the news media. He has secret service protection for life, by law. House arrest is an option. It is unprecedented to incarcerate an ex-president and a presidential candidate. There will be many appeals.

Finally, the documents case will be in Palm Beach County, not far from where I live. Trials in the US are open to the public. How can I attend? Perhaps I have to camp outside in line. I think the accused (Donald Trump) must be present.

Sometimes, the accused have little chance to defend themselves in court, because they have to rely on public defenders. Billionaire Trump has access to the best legal minds in our country.

The wheels of justice turn slowly, but they appear to be going in the right direction.

Stay tuned,

Dave

What happens to Trump today?

by Dave

Donald Trump and Walt Nauta, his personal assistant, will voluntarily turn themselves in to the federal court in Miami today, June 13. The proceedings begin at 3:00 pm. They are expected to plead not guilty on all charges.

Trump and his associates will enter through an underground garage, so there will be no news coverage of him entering and leaving the building. He will not be required to post bail.

Trump will be accompanied by his lawyer, Todd Blanche. He can not practice law in Florida, but the Judge may allow him to represent Trump during the very brief arraignment. The arraignment will take place in the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. Courthouse.

Also, Trump’s personal assistant, Walt Nauta, will be charged with 6 counts as he helped Trump hide boxes of documents and lied to the FBI. He previously served the US in the Navy. There is considerable speculation that he will flip on Trump, if prosecutors offer him a deal. But, this might not be the case, as the prosecution might not really need his cooperation.

See link for additional information:

Link: https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/13/politics/trump-court-appearance-what-to-watch/index.html

Today’s event is historic. Trump will likely have a press conference tonight and will likely call the arraignment a disgrace, and claim that Biden is trying to lock him up, so he can not run for president. He will claim there is a double standard, and he is being targeted unfairly.

The reason that Attorney General appointed a Special Counsel, is to shield the investigation from politics and go where the evidence leads them.

The indictment clearly shows that he personally was involved in taking top secret documents and later hiding them authorities and even his own lawyer. It is a total contradiction for Trump to claim that he had a clear right to the documents under the law, and then take part in an effort to hide them from everyone.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Lawsuits against Trump and his businesses

by Dave

There are two civil cases and four criminal cases against Trump.

See link: What are the legal cases against Trump?

On May 9, 2023, Trump was found guilty of defamation of E. Jean Carroll (Civil case) by falsely denying he sexually assaulted her and ordered to pay 5 million dollars. He continued the attack on her character after the verdict, and she asked that the judgement be raised to 10 million dollars. Trump is appealing the case.

Of all the six cases, the E. Jean Carroll case is probably the least of his worries, because it only involves money and 5 to 10 million dollars to Trump is no big deal. But, losing is a big deal to Trump.

The next civil case against Trump is from the New York State Attorney General, Letitia James, and it concerns business fraud in New York State committed by misrepresenting the value of property to lenders (high valuations) and tax authorities (low valuations). It is due to go to trial in October 2023, and the defendants in this case also include the Trump organization, Eric Trump, Donald Jr. and Ivanka. AG James seeks to permanently bar the Trumps from doing business in New York State, and for defendants to pay 250 million dollars.

Now, come the four “biggies” which should keep the Donald up at night because they are criminal and could send Trump to prison for years. He is due in court on June 13, 2023 to be arraigned on 37 counts in the Mar-a-Lago documents case. This is an evolving story and everyone is guessing of when the trial will take place. The case is being prosecuted by the Special Counsel, Jack Smith, who recently announced the grand jury indictment. It is likely Trump’s lawyers will ask for more time to prepare for a defense. The trial will take place in Florida.

Special Counsel Jack Smith is also investigating the possible criminal activities of Donald Trump in relation to the riot in the Capitol on January 6 and events following the attack. It is expected he will bring charges against Trump and others later this year.

Criminal charges against Trump for election interference in Georgia are expected by Fulton county district attorney Fani Willis, between July 11 to September 1, 2023. A grand jury has completed its work, but the details have not yet been revealed. See link above for details on this case.

Trump has been indicted in the Stormy Daniels Hush Money scandal and a trial is set to begin on March 24, 2023. The prosecutor will be Alvin Braggs, Manhattan district attorney.

All totaled 6 cases, of which I would think the two cases from Special Counsel and the one from Fulton County, GA have the highest potential for Trump to do some serious time in jail.

One last one on my list is an investigation of the deal to create Truth Social using a SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company), namely Digital World. The investigation is being done by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Agency. I don’t know if this is a criminal or civil case. A few details are given on the link below:

Link: Donald Trump’s Legal Issues

It will be hard to keep track of all these cases. Trials will be held in New York and Florida and most likely Georgia and Washington, DC. Trump and his lawyers will be busy.

Donald Trump may be his own worse enemy. This was clearly the case in the “Mar-a-Lago” Documents indictment, where his case is based largely on his statements, text message and photos from his staff. This evidence is very difficult to refute.

In the United States, the wheels of justice turn slowly. This is necessary to protect the innocent. Following an indictment, in general, Trump is quick to announce that he will win in court. Following a guilty verdict, Trump usually announces that he will appeal to a higher court. And of course, after that beg for a pardon if the next president is Republican.

Elizabeth Holmes is another billionaire judged by a jury in January 2022 to have broken the law, by falsifying results from her novel blood testing equipment. She was able to delay for 17 months the time until she reports to prison for her 11 year sentence. As a mother of two, I believe she will only serve a fraction of the time. The judge stated at sentencing:

“I suppose we step back and we look at this, and we think, what is the pathology of fraud? Is it the inability or the refusal to accept responsibility or express contrition in any way? Now, perhaps that is the cautionary tale that will go forward from this case.”

Trump will not accept responsibility. He will blame the Justice Department and the FBI. He will not likely mention that he appointed Christopher Wray as Director of the FBI. And of course, attack the judge presiding over his trial, who is also a Trump appointee.

Rich people can generally find the best lawyers money can buy. Case in point, Jeffrey Epstein who brought in famed attorney Alan Dershowitz to plea bargain his case in 2008 and got a “sweetheart deal” for abuse of underage girls.

No sweetheart deals for Donald Trump. His guilt or innocence will depend on the evidence.

Two important principles should be remembered. One is nobody is above the law. The second is until someone is found guilty in a court of law, they are presumed innocent.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump – we’ve seen all this before

by Dave

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg will soon be able to formally arrest Donald Trump on charges that he misused campaign funds in the hush money to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal. The payments were made in 2016, and Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, served time for these payments.

And of course, Trump is pushing back, even though he has not yet been indicted.

Per the link below, Trump accused Bragg — without substantiation or evidence — of being a “George Soros-backed Radical Left Democrat prosecutor” and running a “sham” investigation against him.  Bragg has been very reluctant to bring charges against Trump in the past until he had a sufficiently strong case.

Trump’s response is bat shit crazy. Boy I’ve been wanting to use this phrase, but there just weren’t the right circumstances.

On March 15, 2023, I received a contribution request from Trump’s Save America PAC fund, with the subject as Never Surrender, all in capitals and goes on to state:

“The Left thinks that if they bury me with enough witch hunts and intimidate my family and associates that I’ll eventually throw up my hands and give up on our America First movement.

Let me be as clear as possible: I WILL NEVER SURRENDER.

I walked away from a very nice life where the media never said a single mean thing about me.

I knew the price I’d have to pay for running a campaign that promised to take on the Deep State, the Open Borders Lobby, global special interests, and the Soros Money Machine.”

The Soros Money Machine?? George Soros is a billionaire, who runs the Open Society Foundations. It is an excellent foundation, fighting repression in many ways by autocratic governments. Better education leads to an informed public and puts pressure on government to change and allow dissent. The foundation has been active in Eastern Europe’s refugee crisis. Soros money machine has been put to good use.

Insider, Trump’s Pre-emptive Attack on Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg

Open Source Foundations

Fact check, Reuters, 2020, False claims about George Soros

I don’t think paying a porn star hush money from campaign funds, is related to “Saving America” and will decline the bat shit crazy donation request. Trump says his first love is to his country, but everything else says that his first love is to himself and saving Donald Trump.

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Likely indictment #2 is the Georgia Election Meddling Case. This one will be a bit more complicated and could involve a number of officials including Trump. A “Special Grand Jury” was used to help determine the facts in this case, and this information is then given to a normal Grand Jury, to determine if there was potential violations of the law.

See link: Jury in Georgia Trump Inquiry Recommended Multiple Indictments, Forewoman Says

The indictments could come as early as next week. The judge has sealed the recommendations of the Special Grand Jury.

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Attorney Jack Smith is the Special Counsel appointed by DOJ AG Merrick Garland is leading more criminal investigations and likely to produce more indictments, related to obstruction of justice in relation to the classified documents taken from the White House and the event leading to the Jan 6 attack of the capital.

While Donald Trump will continue to blast the legal system and promote wacko conspiracy theories (deep state, George Soros, etc), some very serious prosecutors are on his case, because no one is above the law.

And Trump will be able to pay for the very best legal defense, but that might not be enough. Besides crazy charges that everyone is colluding to get him, Trump will do what every he can to drag our the proceedings.

The “everyone is out to get me” is not a defense. It is just a marketing ploy to get contributions.

So, everyone deserves their day in court, and Trump will get his and the chance to present his defense against the charges. That’s the way the courts work.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump’s Documents Case: Special Master is Gone

by Dave

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday in favor of the Department of Justice, and ended the review by the Special Master of seized documents as Judge Aileen Cannon had ordered.

Chief Justice John Roberts remarked in an interview, that he likes to write opinions that ordinary people can understand. Many of the opinions fall short of this goal. The Appellate Court delivered a “Roberts’ gem.” The 19 page decision gets to the point quickly. Judge Cannon did not have the right to order the Special Master review of seized documents. Donald J. Trump verses the United States of America sets out unique privileges that former presidents or any former official just don’t have.

trump-ca11-2022-12-01Download

I am certain that Judge Cannon focused on a very narrow balancing act, between the right of the Department of Justice need for documents for possible prosecution, verses Donald Trump right to have returned to him, those documents which were clearly personal items. So, I guess her thinking was that if DOJ and Trump could work out rules for a speedy review, her order would stand.

But, Judge Cannon goes from law to politics, when she goes from singular to plural in just one word. And the Appellate Court catches her, as she claims she must consider the parties need for the documents, instead of the party (Donald Trump) to support the need of the Special Master review. I can see now, why the Department of Justice needed an expediated appeals hearing. The judge was re-writing case law and setting a dangerous precedent, that makes every search warrant a balancing act between parties.

The opinion’s first line: This appeal requires us to consider whether the district court had jurisdiction to block the United States from using lawfully seized records in a criminal investigation. The answer is no. And the next 18 pages, show clearly why the Judge’s opinion lacks merits based on case law.

Then, starting on page 20, the opinion in two sentences sums up the problem with Judge Cannon’s decision. “The law is clear. We cannot write a rule that allows any subject of a search warrant to block government investigations after the execution of the warrant. Nor can we write a rule that allows only former presidents to do so.”

There are in fact, situations where the Department of Justice will ask for a Special Master to review documents. And other times, where the search went beyond the warrant or there is client-attorney privileged documents, best handled by a third party, as a Special Master overseen by a court magistrate.

The beauty of this opinion is that the Appellate Court is crystal clear that the burden for blocking access to seized material was with Trump, and he failed to pass the “Richey Test.” On page 20, the Appellate Court states:

The Richey test has been in place for nearly fifty years; its limits apply no matter who the government is investigating. To create a special exception here would defy our Nation’s foundational principle that our law applies “to all, without regard to numbers, wealth, or rank.

Judge Aileen Cannon, who violated this principle, is not called out. That’s not the way opinions are written. But, she definitely is soundly condemned by this ruling.

The Special Master is gone. The FBI’s internal review by their filter team can begin.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Trump Finance and Documents Lawsuits

by Dave

This is just a quick update.

Finance Civil Lawsuit, September 21, 2022. NY Attorney General Letitia James filed a civil lawsuit against Donald Trump and his three children (Eric, Ivanka and Donald, Jr) alleging a long series of highly inflated estimates of the asset values of properties owned by the Trump Organization. The inflated estimates were used to in general to obtain loans. Other false estimates were provided to insurance companies to show the Trump organization had sufficient asset to guarantee repayment of the loans. The AG explained the basis of the charges at a press conference on September 21, 2022.

The lawsuit is provided below.

NY AG _Financial ComplaintDownload

As many excellent summaries of the civil lawsuit have been posted on the internet, I will not summarize the complaint, except to say it is 222 pages long, with 838 numbered paragraphs. I note the complaint provided below, is user friendly, as one can click on any of the items in the table of contents, and it will go directly to the specific paragraph. Page 213 is the “Prayer for Relief” which is way the Attorney General would like to rule against defendants. This is all up to the courts.

According to Politico:

“James’ suit relies on a special statute for repeat instances of alleged violations of the law, stemming from real estate transactions. She is also filing a criminal referral to federal prosecutors in Manhattan and a separate tax fraud referral to the IRS for the same underlying allegations.”

See Link: Trump, company and family members sued by New York AG over alleged fraud scheme

The legal pundits have indicated that it may be more than a year before this goes to trial. With so many alleged violations, if this is a trial by jury, it will be a brutal ordeal for jurors. And the criminal investigations will continue, and these can result in jail sentences for Donald Trump and gang.

In the meantime, I wonder if anyone would loan money to Trump?

The Mar-a-Lago Documents case

The Appellate Court moved at lightening speed to allow DOJ access to 100 classified documents. It is likely that Trump’s lawyer will ask the full panel of the Appellate Court to review the decision and stay the decision of the 3-judge panel while under appeal. I think this will happen quickly.

Stay tuned,

Dave

Director of the FBI: Christopher Wray

by Dave

AG Merrick Garland yesterday, reminded us that the Justice Department must be unbiased, as follows:

“Faithful adherence to the rule of law is the bedrock principle of the Justice Department and of our democracy. Upholding the rule of law means applying the law evenly, without fear or favor. Under my watch, that is precisely what the Justice Department is doing. All Americans are entitled to the evenhanded application of the law, to due process of the law, and to the presumption of innocence.”

I think AG Merrick Garland and Director Christopher Wray make a very good team in fighting crime at all levels. The FBI investigates and Justice Department prosecutes. Frequently, the FBI works in close cooperation with local officials, like the recent arrests of Mexican drug smugglers in both Texas and Arizona.

Authorities bust multi-million-dollar drug operation with ties to Mexican drug cartels

FBI Wiretap Opens Window To Murderous Drug Gang—And A Crucial Flaw In Snapchat Privacy

Drugs come through both Texas and Arizona, so the FBI is in the perfect position to coordinate state investigations.

Christopher Wray is the 8th Director of the FBI. He was sworn in on August 2, 2017. He was nominated by Donald Trump and was confirmed by the Senate 92-5. Normally, his term is 10 years. I was very glad to see Biden keeping him on. He’s got the right education and experience for the job.

Wray’s nomination was confirmed by a GOP-led Senate, with votes from Trump allies such as Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, Marco Rubio of Florida, and Josh Hawley of Missouri. At the time Trump called him a man of “impeccable credentials.” See Wray’s bio in the link below.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_A._Wray

See how quickly the Republicans have turned against the FBI. From Ted Cruz’s tweet:

“The FBI raiding Donald Trump is unprecedented. It is corrupt & an abuse of power. What Nixon tried to do, Biden has now implemented: The Biden Admin has fully weaponized DOJ & FBI to target their political enemies. And with 87K new IRS agents, they’re coming for YOU too.”

And to respond to Ted Cruz, hopefully some of these new agents will work in the criminal investigations department (IRS-CI) and they are coming for you, particularly if your name is Kunal Kalra or Jon Woo Son:

Kunal Kalra, AKA “shecklemayne”, operation: In August 2019, Kunal Kalra operated an unlicensed Money Service Business (MSB) in which he exchanged about 25 million dollars for drug dealers, credit card fraudsters, and performed other illicit activities. Kalra owned and operated a Bitcoin Kiosk (aka Bitcoin ATM) that would allow for the exchange of large amounts of money with no Know Your Customer requirements. This is believed to be the first federal criminal case charging an unlicensed money remitting business that used a Bitcoin kiosk.

In October 2019, Welcome to Video, one of the largest Darkweb child pornography sites in the world was shut down. IRS-CI was instrumental in the investigation by the tracing the bitcoin transactions used by people from all over the world to pay for the illicit material. Jong Woo Son, a South Korean national and the administrator of the website, was arrested and an eventual seizure of the child pornography material was conducted. IRS-CI performed the operation in conjunction with other agencies: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom and the Korean National Police.

Things are getting tougher for the IRS Criminal Investigation, given the ease at which money is transferred over the internet. Fortunately, they usually get their man with over a 90% conviction rate.

Now, I guess you can tell, tough law enforcement means you can never pick sides. Agents have to be meticulous and persistent. There’s no fear or favor as Garland put it. There can be no Republican or Democrat side, only the rule of law side.

Stay tuned,

Dave