Donald Trump was found in contempt of court and fined US$9,000 after the New York judge overseeing his criminal hush-money trial ruled the former president repeatedly blasted key witnesses on social media in violation of a gag order.

Justice Juan Merchan in Manhattan on Tuesday fined the former president US$1,000 for each of nine violations of the gag order and warned that future breaches could result in jail time. Prosecutors sought the penalties after Trump had repeatedly posted on social media about adult film star Stormy Daniels and ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, both key witnesses in the case against him.

“Defendant is hereby warned that the court will not tolerate continued wilful violations of its lawful orders and that if necessary and appropriate under the circumstances, it will impose an incarceratory punishment,” Merchan said Tuesday.

Trump’s use of social media, news interviews and campaign speeches has created a challenge for judges overseeing his many legal cases as they weigh the impact of his public comments against his free-speech rights - especially as he campaigns for a return to the White House. It also illustrates Trump’s habit of attacking critics with his high-profile bully pulpit to sway public opinion and get what he wants.

The judge rejected Trump’s argument that his disputed posts were made in response to “attacks” against him.

Trump’s lawyers were “unable to direct the court’s attention to any other specific ‘attacks’ by the protected witnesses which immediately preceded defendant’s posts,” the judge wrote. “Defendant offered no exhibits at the hearing.”

The ruling was a near certainty after a hearing earlier this month where Merchan ridiculed Trump’s lawyer’s defenses as “silly” and said he was losing all credibility.

The judge also ordered that Trump remove seven posts from his Truth Social account and two from his campaign website by Tuesday at 2.15pm.

‘Threatening, inflammatory’

Before the trial started, Merchan imposed the gag order after concluding Trump had made statements that were “threatening, inflammatory, denigrating” and had targeted court staff and other individuals. The judge expanded his order to include his family, after the former president attacked the judge’s daughter on social media.

It isn’t the first time Trump has run afoul of a gag order. Last year, during New York state civil fraud trial that he eventually lost, a judge fined the former president US$15,000 for twice violating a gag order in that case. Trump faces similar restrictions on what he can say in a federal criminal case against him in Washington, where he’s charged with trying to overturn the 2020 election results.

Trump denies wrongdoing in the New York hush-money case, as well as three other criminal prosecutions he faces. The Republican frontrunner in the November presidential election claims the prosecutions are part of a political “witch hunt” against him.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the New York criminal case, alleges Trump falsified dozens of business records to conceal a US$130,000 payment to Daniels to keep her quiet before the 2016 presidential election about an alleged affair. Prosecutors say the payment was part of a broader criminal conspiracy to keep voters in the dark about Trump’s conduct with women before they cast their ballots.

Jurors on Tuesday heard testimony from a former banker for Cohen about the US$130,000 payment to Daniels, which was allegedly made at Trump’s direction. Trump’s repayment to Cohen generated the alleged false business records at the centre of the case because the former president is accused of falsely claiming the money was for legal services.

The banker, Gary Farro, described a series of emails and documents setting up a wire transfer by First Republic Bank to the trust account held by a lawyer for Daniels.

Farro said he “absolutely” would have wanted to know that the account was intended to pay an adult film star.

“It is an industry that we do not work with,” Farro said.
 

  - Bloomberg