Hush money trial
Court rejects Trump’s hoped-for delay
Donald Trump is accused in the hush money case of, among other things, falsifying business documents. photo
© Mary Altaffer/AP Pool/dpa
It is the first criminal trial against a former US president: Donald Trump paid hush money to a porn actress and is said to have tried to conceal the payment illegally.
The criminal trial against Trump is the first against a former US president and is scheduled to begin next Monday in New York with jury selection. However, according to media reports, Trump’s lawyers are trying to delay the start of the trial with other applications, including a lawsuit against the judge in charge, Juan Merchan, before an appeals court. They should also defend themselves against the judge’s restrictions on Trump’s public statements about witnesses, jurors and judicial employees.
The 77-year-old, who wants to be re-elected to the White House for the Republicans in November, is accused in the hush money case of, among other things, falsifying business documents. The background to the case is that Trump had $130,000 in hush money paid to porn actress Stormy Daniels in 2016, shortly before his election as president.
She had claimed that she had had sex with him. Trump denies an affair, but does not deny that money was flowed. Non-disclosure agreements between two parties are not illegal. However, Trump is accused of illegally recording the payments, trying to conceal them illegally and thereby trying to cover up other violations of the law. Trump has pleaded not guilty.