President Donald Trump’s legal team is seeking to overturn his criminal convictions related to hush money payments, citing serious procedural issues in the trial and alleged bias from the presiding judge. In a court filing submitted to New York’s intermediate appellate court on Monday, Trump’s attorneys contended that the case was ‘fatally marred’ by improper evidence and that Judge Juan Merchan should have recused himself due to perceived political bias.
The appeal comes 17 months after a Manhattan jury convicted Trump on 34 felony counts stemming from a scheme to conceal a payment made by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Prosecutors argued that the $130,000 payment was intended to silence Daniels about a purported affair during the 2016 presidential campaign, which Trump has consistently denied.
Trump’s legal representatives, from the prestigious law firm Sullivan & Cromwell, are urging the Appellate Division’s First Department to reverse the convictions, characterizing the prosecution as the ‘most politically charged prosecution in our Nation’s history.’ They argue that the charges were initiated by a Democratic district attorney amid a highly contentious presidential election, where Trump was the leading Republican candidate.
The appeal claims that the Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, manipulated New York law concerning business records to create a felony that never existed. Trump’s attorneys assert that Bragg constructed a dubious legal theory by combining time-barred misdemeanors to substantiate a felony charge and incorrectly withheld crucial evidence until the trial’s charge conference.
Trump’s lawyers also emphasized a recent Supreme Court ruling that limits the admissibility of evidence regarding a President’s official acts. They contend that the trial was significantly compromised by the consideration of evidence that should have been protected under presidential immunity, including damaging testimony from Hope Hicks, Trump’s former communications director, and material drawn from his Twitter account.
The appeal criticizes Judge Merchan for allowing this evidence, claiming it was inappropriate given the legal guidelines established by the Supreme Court.
Additionally, Trump’s legal team argues that Merchan’s previous political contributions—$15 to President Joe Biden’s campaign and $20 to organizations promoting Democratic causes—indicate a conflict of interest that should have disqualified him from overseeing the case.
Prior to the trial, the New York State Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics ruled that Merchan’s donations and his daughter’s association with a digital ad agency working with Democratic officials did not present a conflict. Nevertheless, following Trump’s conviction, Merchan issued a minimal sentence of unconditional discharge, asserting it was the only lawful outcome to avoid interfering with the presidential office.
As Trump seeks to overturn the verdict, the Manhattan District Attorney’s office has refrained from commenting on the appeal. The legal battle over the hush money payments continues to unravel, amid ongoing discourse about the implications for Trump and the upcoming presidential race.
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