Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg suggested that former President Donald Trump should be put in jail for 30 days should he violate a gag order imposed in his hush money trial in Manhattan by Judge Juan Merchan.
Manhattan DA Wants Trump Thrown In Jail For 30 Days If He Violates Gag Order https://t.co/Do0LYourjR pic.twitter.com/J7mHLmJmhY
— Daily Wire News (@DailyWireNews) April 16, 2024
In a motion filed to the court on Tuesday, Bragg’s office asked the court to hold Trump accountable for any possible violation of his gag order which bars him from making public statements about jurors, court staff or witnesses involved in the trial.
According to the DA’s office, additional fines or jail time would be appropriate actions for the court to take if Trump violates the gag order and makes public statements about people involved in the case.
“This Court should again admonish defendant to comply with his obligations under the order. And finally, this Court should warn defendant that future violations of the Court’s restrictions on his extrajudicial statements can be punished not only with additional fines, but also with a term of incarceration of up to thirty days,” the filing read.
“It is absolutely critical that defendant immediately halt any conduct that would violate the April 1 order’s narrow restrictions to protect the integrity of the ongoing trial. A finding of criminal contempt, imposition of sanctions, and stark warnings from this Court are the minimum remedies necessary to achieve this indispensable objective,” the filing read further.
Bragg further wrote in the filing that Trump’s social media comments on former porn star Stormy Daniels and his former attorney Michael Cohen are attacks against “known witnesses,” as stated in the court’s April 1 gag order. He also alleged that Trump’s attacks are “deliberate and intended to intimidate this Court and impede the orderly administration of this trial.”
In a gag order issued against the former president on March 26, Merchan barred him from making public criticisms of court staff, witnesses and jurors.
The judge expanded the gag order on April 1 to include family members of lawyers and jurists after the GOP presumptive nominee made a post on Truth Social criticizing Merchan and his daughter, Loren.
