Judge Juan Merchan, presiding over the hush money case against former President Donald Trump, has set the trial date for April 15, rejecting the defense team's request for a lengthy delay or dismissal of charges. The ruling came after hours of arguments in a New York City courtroom, where Trump's attorneys sought a 90-day postponement or dismissal due to alleged violations in the discovery process.
The trial, originally scheduled to begin on Monday, March 25, with jury selection, had already been delayed until mid-April by Judge Merchan to allow Trump and his lawyers more time to review 15,000 records of potential evidence shared by the Justice Department from a previous federal investigation. However, Trump's legal team argued that a 30-day delay was insufficient and that the materials from the federal investigation were critical for his defense in the state case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
During the hearing, Judge Merchan found that Bragg's office "is not at fault for the late production of documents from the U.S. Attorney's office" and that the case could proceed to trial next month. Trump's attorney, Todd Blanche, then asked for another delay due to the pre-trial publicity surrounding the case, stating, "There's a lot of news because he's running for president, which is another reason why he should not have to sit for a trial now." Despite this plea, Judge Merchan remained firm on the April 15 trial date.
Trump, who attended the hearing, blasted the new trial date as "election interference" and called it "a disgrace." He vowed to appeal the decision, saying, "We'll obviously be appealing." The former president appeared grim on his way into court, calling the case "a witch hunt" and "a hoax."
The hearing was marked by heated exchanges between the judge and Trump's legal team, with Judge Merchan criticizing the defense for suggesting that the Manhattan DA's office was responsible for the late production of evidence by federal prosecutors. "You are literally accusing the Manhattan DA's office and the people assigned to this case of prosecutorial misconduct," the judge said, emphasizing that the DA's office had no control over their federal counterparts.
Bragg's office had supported a 30-day delay in the proceedings to allow Trump's team to review the additional documents but warned against further postponement. They argued that fewer than 300 of the more than 170,000 documents turned over by federal prosecutors were potentially relevant to Trump's criminal defense.
The hush money case revolves around alleged payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal during the 2016 presidential campaign. Bragg has alleged that Trump fraudulently altered business records related to these payments, which were reportedly directed by Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges and denies having had a sexual encounter with Daniels.
In a separate development, Trump received some good news during the recess when a state appeals court reduced the size of the bond he needs to post in the New York civil fraud case against him to $175 million and granted him an additional 10 days to post it. If Trump posts the amount, New York Attorney General Letitia James would not be able to begin collecting on the judgment until after the appeal is decided.
