Live coverage: Testimony resumes in Trump's first criminal trial
On Tuesday, Judge Juan Merchan ruled that Donald Trump had repeatedly violated the gag order in his trial for 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal payments made as part of a “catch-and-kill” scheme during the 2016 presidential election.
Merchan found Trump in contempt for nine social media posts that prosecutors identified and fined Trump $1,000 for each violation. He also warned that since he was unable to levy fines high enough to be significant to Trump, incarceration is a possibility if Trump continues to violate the gag order.
However, even before Merchan made that ruling, prosecutors identified four additional instances in which they believed Trump had violated the gag order.
Thursday morning started with a hearing on those additional violations; however, the judge did not issue a ruling.
Testimony resumed after the hearing, with entertainment attorney Keith Davidson, who negotiated deals for both model Karen McDougal and adult film actress Stormy Daniels, back on the stand.
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