Yesterday, Costello behaved so atrociously on the witness stand that Juan Merchan cleared the courtroom to admonish him & the defense attorneys. Costello is due back on the stand
Some of Trump's team, since the start of the trial, have been noticeably confident of a #HungJury. #Blanche, Trump's lead lawyer, shared his thoughts about the idea w/a NY Magazine reporter who wrote a cover story about him as the trial kicked off.
The prediction that the trial will end w/that outcome has been striking, particularly since hung juries, in which jurors cannot agree on a defendant's guilt or innocence, are relatively unusual.
Defense tried to muddy that story on cross -examination of Cohen. But by calling Costello, they have given prosecutors opportunity to reinforce the story, & emails shown yesterday & this morning suggest that they have ample evidence to support.
#RobertCostello wrote to #MichaelCohen that there had been positive comments about him from the White House & that he had “friends in high places.” Hoffinger gets Costello to say it “definitely referred to President Trump.” 👀
The emails corroborate prosecutors’ story, suggesting that Costello was manipulating Cohen at the direction of #RudyGiuliani & #Trump, while misleading Cohen so that he would not understand what was happening.
#RobertCostello testifies that “sometimes” his emails speak for themselves. Sometimes, the implication is & as he said earlier, they do not.
🙄 more [#mansplaining]
🚨🚨 Costello wrote in an email that his mission was to “get Cohen on the right page without giving him the appearance that we are following instructions from Giuliani or the president.”
The jurors are paying close attention, much more so than they did to the end of #MichaelCohen's cross-examination.
#RobertCostello has asked several times to offer additional context, & Susan #Hoffinger has made clear she does not want that context, cutting him off & moving to her next question. In doing so, Hoffinger shows that she believes she has the jury on her side after the way Costello treated her & the court yesterday.
#Trump atty, Emil #Bove just insisted there was a “pending question” from Hoffinger when there wasn’t, forcing Justice #Merchan to once again correct him.
#RobertCostello seems to be more of a witness for the prosecution — albeit a hostile one —than the defense. The emails couldn’t possibly be viewed in any way other than how prosecutors want jurors to view them: They show Costello misleading #MichaelCohen, saying something to him directly & another thing behind his back.
#RobertCostello has just denied that, once he began to believe that #MichaelCohen was in turn misleading him, he was angry or upset. He was, he says, “informed.”
Another email from Costello to his law partner shows that in fact, Costello was very angry at Cohen, contradicting his previous answer.
“What should I say to this asshole?” Costello asked his partner. “He is playing with the most powerful man on the planet.”
#RobertCostello answers “no” when asked if he has animosity toward #MichaelCohen 😂. #Hoffinger points out that Costello went to Washington last week to testify before Congress about Cohen, & made aggressive comments about him. Costello says he didn’t know his comments would be reported in the press [seriously?].
#Hoffinger’s final question is an accusation: whether #RobertCostello’s testimony to Congress was meant to #intimidate#MichaelCohen as he testified in this trial. Costello asked her to repeat the question & then denied the accusation. “No,” he said. “Ridiculous.”
#Trump atty #Bove, is on redirect. Costello testifies that Cohen said in April 2018 that he would be “eternally grateful” for the help & guidance that Costello had given him in those difficult days.
Per a pool report, #Trump confirmed that the defense will be resting today, as expected, in remarks outside the courtroom in the hallway. “We’ll be resting pretty quickly,” he said. “Resting meaning resting the case. I won’t be resting. I don’t rest. I’d like to rest sometimes but I don’t get to rest.” #NodFarter
#Bove, in his questioning, tries to reargue that #RobertCostello was not concerned about having failed #Trump but rather not being hired, & paid, by #MichaelCohen.
Bove makes it clear that Cohen, in 2018, used the back channel to Trump that he had been provided by Costello, communicating through the lawyer to #RudyGiuliani & presumably, Trump. [yeah, and?]
There are objections, & lawyers confer w/Justice #Merchan who made clear he does not want this testimony by #RobertCostello to turn into a “trial within a trial,” aimed at attacking a witness — #MichaelCohen.
After the sidebar, Costello says he was giving Cohen “options” & waiting for his “instructions”
#Bove: “Did you ever pressure Michael Cohen to do anything?”
Costello: “I did not”
Bove: “Did you ever have control over Michael Cohen?”
@Liliki nonjury proceedings if any, closing arguments, jury instructions, deliberations (which can include requests by jurors to review evidence & testimony transcript, additional guidance on matters of law, etc) & finally verdicts on each charge.
Then of course Trump will appeal if found guilty on any of the charges.
#Hoffinger, in a brief, final series of questions & answers, again confirms that #RobertCostello was never officially hired as #MichaelCohen’s lawyer. Costello steps down from the witness stand.
Justice #Merchan turns to the #jury & explains the upcoming schedule. Closing arguments will take a day & his instructions to them afterward will take at least an hour.
Court will be adjourned, for jurors, until a week from today.
The judge reminds #jurors that they should not discuss the case or read the news about the trial in the meantime.
Court is adjourned until the afternoon when it’s expected that prosecutors & defense lawyers will srgue for their preferred versions of the #JuryInstructions during a “charging conference”.
Justice #Merchan may also rule on the defense lawyers' latest attempt to #dismiss the case, which they made in a motion yesterday.
Tues afternoon, the #TrumpTrial will go into some dry legalities, as prosecutors & defense present to Justice #Merchan how they want the court to instruct the #jurors as they deliberate.
The 2 sides will lay out their arguments for #JuryInstructions as it prepares to weigh the charges against #Trump — 34 #felony counts of falsifying business records.
#Jury instructions are meant to translate #legal doctrine into intelligible language for the 12 laypeople who will decide the case.
Each side filed drafts of their proposals w/the court.
Arguments before Justice #Merchan occur w/o the jury.
Acc/to the NYT, Prosecutors’ instructions will ask the judge to give the jury “unusual flexibility” in determining whether #Trump was actively involved in the false record scheme.
Prosecutors will argue that even if #Trump didn’t personally create the records, the #jury can find him responsible if the creation of the false records was “a reasonably foreseeable consequence of his conduct.”
this is NY [#law]
Defense’s proposal is reportedly less focused, much like their witness questioning & opening statement.
Justice #Merchan asks the defense to argue on behalf of one of its many requests: to add the word “willfully” in 2 places to the #JuryInstructions on a federal #ElectionLaw which isn’t charged.
Defense proposes #JuryInstructions on campaign finance law “#FECA” (federal election campaign act) must include the word "willfully" to specify a #criminal violation.
The 34 falsifying business records charges against #Trump are #felony charges bc prosecutors say he used the false records to try to conceal a 2nd #crime.
That 2nd crime, prosecutors specified, is a violation of a state #ElectionLaw that forbids a person from seeking election by “unlawful means.”
Defense & prosecution debate what types of #UnlawfulMeans apply. Defense asks for additions that to make it clear only #crimes should count, while prosecution suggests #civil violations should apply, too.
#Merchan rejects defense’s request to tell jurors that candidates weren’t limited in 2015 & 2016 — before #Trump's election —— from contributing funds to their own campaigns. Prosecution called it misleading & Merchan determined it was unnecessary to explain it to the jury.
Judge #Merchan says he’ll allow the defense to argue the issue on limits to individual’s contributions to their own campaign during their summation, but he won’t include it in his instructions.
Merchan reserves his final decision on the argument over the word “willfully.”
Defense argues the instructions should include the phrase “for the purpose of influencing an election” but that it should specify it’s in reference to spending related to the election.
#Trump atty #Bove agrees the sentence is an accurate recitation of the “irrespective rule” (found in #FECA’s § on personal use) but defense wants examples included for the jury from the #FEC’s prior application of the rule.
There’s a long back & forth about prosecutors’ proposal that the #JuryInstructions include language suggesting it was “reasonably forseeable” that false records would be created as a result of #Trump’s conduct.
Justice #Merchan says that he’s inclined NOT to include it.
— that is not good, it’s specific to #NY#law.
But he reserves judgment for now, as he did on “willfully.”
Justice Merchan hears arguments re the expanded #intent#JuryInstructions.
He indicates agreement w/the defense on causing false entries when those false entries are “reasonably foreseeable” to the defendant based on his conduct.
This is related to “#intent to commit or conceal another #crime” — the 2nd crime issue.
Prosecutor #Colangelo argues case #law supports the prosecution.
#Trump atty Bove says the DA’s theory is = to "causing the causer."
(Seriously, no idea wtf he means)
Justice Merchan points out that the #felony charges of falsifying business records #Trump faces includes an #intent to conceal another #crime. The #law doesn't require prosecutors to show that Trump intended to orchestrate a #conspiracy, but rather that by falsifying business records, he intended to hide said conspiracy.
#Merchan says he will leave that instruction as is – a win for prosecutors.
Prosecution & defense argue whether the evidence at trial supported the idea that #Trump did enter a conspiracy w/ #Pecker & #MichaelCohen in 2015 to suppress negative stories during his presidential campaign.
(isn’t that for the jury to decide?)
Defense suggests that there was nothing #criminal about “participating” in that meeting, & that meeting w/ The #NationalEnquirer was simply “standard operating procedure” for campaigning. (Um, no)
Justice Merchan asks, if there’s nothing wrong w/ #Trump “participating” in the meeting, why not just say he did?
Good question.
Merchan again reserves judgment on the wording addressing Trump’s participation in the #conspiracy — though it sounds like he’s going to side w/prosecution.
Defense argues that to reach a #guilty#verdict jurors MUST not only to agree #unanimously that #Trump had falsified records to conceal a #conspiracy to win an election by unlawful means, but also jurors must be unanimous on what the #UnlawfulMeans are; making reaching a verdict nearly impossible.
Trump's attys argued that while that unanimity is not required by #law, Justice Merchan can use his discretion in asking for it.
@Nonilex Aah, Trump is trying the old "I am a very important man and therefore my case deserves unique jury instructions and a higher burden of proof than every other criminal defendant" defense.
Good luck with that one, Donald. It may work with FedSoc judges you appointed, but not a truly independent judiciary.
After a break, Justice #Merchan tells the attys that they've gone through his concerns about #JuryInstructions & asks prosecutors & defense about theirs.
Merchan denies defense’s ask for instruction that NDAs not being illegal (no shit), & notes there’s been plenty of testimony to that point & they can argue it on summation.
#Merchan was going to deny the request (that’s what jury selection was for), but prosecution offers a version w/more neutral language, & Merchan agrees.
Re #DelayTactics, it’s of note, that the week before the #criminal NY #TrumpTrial began, #Trump atty #Bove made multiple efforts to delay in appeals court, arguing daily for postponing.
This afternoon Bove has offered many arguments which seem obvious to be denied by Justice #Merchan.
Seems pretty clear he’s just trying to draw this out as long as possible.
And there it is, #Merchan signifies he’s losing patience w/ Bove as he continues to argue a decided issue. Bove insists it’s important, & generously Merchan gives him another chance to speak. But now Merchan repeats his previous decisions on the issue above is harping on, namely that #MichaelCohen was #Trump’s atty when the charged conduct took place.
#Bove next argues for instruction about “the involvement” of [other] counsel, even though #Merchan ruled before the trial that #Trump could not argue that he believed the acts were legal because lawyers were involved.
Bove says there was evidence presented that makes the instruction appropriate & it goes specifically to intent.
🚨Prosecutor Colangelo notes that under NY #law, one predicate to obtaining such an instruction is that the defendant himself testifies.🤣
#Colangelo argues the instruction proposed about fmr #NationalEnquirer publisher #Pecker’s legal consult w/his attorney is irrelevant, because Pecker testified that he didn’t reveal all of the facts to AMI’s general counsel when he consulted them & therefore his attys couldn’t provide proper legal advice.
Bove argues that what matters is Pecker told Trump that he had been told the McDougal agreement was “bulletproof,” & Trump relied it.
@Nonilex Bove is like the frickin' Energizer Bunny. But unlike with batteries, persistence here is not to be applauded.
Trump could have invoked the "advice of counsel" defense, but didn't want to have to meet his disclosure obligations to use it. Raising the same issue repeatedly by calling it a slightly different name is, as Merchan aptly put it, "disingenuous."
@qotca@Nonilex
I know. I thought that Joe Piscopo's name was thrown in as just a joke, but I guess he is really desperate for attention.
That Pam Bondi's name can be brought up by our media without highlighting her "alleged" corruption each time is a travesty though that's more crucial for our democracy.
@qotca@Nonilex
In March 2016, CREW discovered that the Trump Foundation had broken the law by giving an illegal $25,000 contribution to a political group supporting Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. Charitable foundations like the Trump Foundation are not allowed to engage in politics. Even more problematic was the fact that the contribution was given as Bondi’s office was deciding whether to take legal action related to Trump University. https://www.citizensforethics.org/reports-investigations/crew-investigations/the-trump-foundation-pam-bondi-scandal/
@Nonilex
What makes them so sure they'll get a hung jury, have they tampered with the jury?
I'd start investigating that.
And if trump's lawyers are blabbing about the jury and making "predictions", doesn't that fall under juror intimidation? Does that gag order include trump's lawyers?
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