Despite a history of decisions against the businessman-turned-politician’s friends, acting NY Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan will rule over the hush money trial of former President Trump.
The former president will appear in court in NY City on Tuesday afternoon for an arraignment in connection with claimed hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 election campaign. Many detractors have labeled the case as politically driven, citing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s reputation for being lenient on crime, particularly severe crimes.
In a post to his social media site Truth Social last week, Trump claimed that Merchan was “hand-picked” by Bragg to rule over the case and that Merchan “hates” him. On Tuesday morning, another all-caps post on Truth Social claimed that Merchan is “highly partisan” and that his family is made up of “well-known Trump haters.”
According to the Associated Press, Merchan, an immigrant who came to the United States from Columbia when he was 6 years old, received a law degree in 1994 from Hofstra University. Before being appointed as a family court judge by former NY City Mayor Michael Bloomberg in 2006, he worked in the state attorney general’s office. Merchan has served on the New York Supreme Court as an acting judge since 2009.
Merchan issued a decision against the Trump Organization earlier in the year, holding the real estate firm guilty of 17 charges stemming from a multi-year tax evasion plan in which the company dispersed various presents and benefits to executives. He fined the firm $1.6 million, the utmost allowed by law.
Allen Weisselberg, the company’s former top financial officer, consented to a plea agreement with authorities and testified against the business during the trial. After pleading guilty to 15 criminal counts at the end of last year, Merchan sentenced the 75-year-old to five months in jail, which he is presently spending. “Having heard the evidence, I believe a stiffer sentence would have been appropriate,” Merchan said, according to POLITICO.
Trump will allegedly face 34 criminal charges of falsifying company documents, all of which are the lowest-level crimes in the state but each of which brings a maximum sentence of four years in jail. Merchan rejected a request for video coverage by a group of news sources, but he will allow cameras to take still pictures of the 76-year-old Trump before his hearing on Tuesday.
Merchan could also issue a gag order to Trump, preventing the former commander-in-chief and current presidential candidate from talking about the specifics of the contentious case. On Tuesday night, Trump intends to give an address about the arraignment.
Old news. Why send it this late?
Many illigal immigrants hate Trump. Did Merchan come to USA illegally or is he drug lord from Colombia.
This is all a sham!!!! It’s called hate Trump. Disgraceful that this is happening in our country of the U.S.A. WE ARE A LAUGHING STOCK AROUND THE WORLD. And who gains from this? Answer: Russia, China, Iran and all the Leftist Socialist Marxist Democrats. Disgraceful.
MalcolmX,“The white liberal is the worst enemy to America, and the worst enemy to the black man and black pregnant woman”.
Trump could be indicted on the weakest of cases unless the venue is changed. You have an anti-Trump Judge, an anti-Trump AG in a deep blue area. This could be a travesty of the law.
This guy is what we Cubans call “un indio de mierda impercudido” look it up on Google translate. Regardless of his origins, no judge who’s previously tried cases of the magnitude he has should be allowed to continue presiding over new cases involving the same defendant. Like Bragg, this hack in black will end up looking weak and pathetic when this farce implodes.
More evidence of how affirmative action and other programs have ruined the country. There are judges who should not be judges, and lawyers who should not be allowed to practice. These phonies are vengeful racists that only want to take out their hatred on successful and popular whites. This is the thanks whites get for trying to help them. May they all rot in hell for all time.
I heard of a honest Liberal Judge, and then I awakened from this and realized there has never been a honest Demonrat.