Donald Trump has found himself muzzled, and he does not like it one bit.
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan has restricted what Donald Trump can say on social media about the hush-money case being presented by Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.
This was not really surprising after seeing his comments regarding the E. Jean Carroll case as that was happening.
Judge Merchan has made it clear this case will be about the evidence presented, not some sideshow created by Trump’s posts on social media.
No Leaks
Merchan appears to have been worried about the evidence turned over to the Trump legal team during discovery being leaked into the media.
Merchan instructed Trump that the material provided was “solely for the purposes of preparing a defense in this matter,” reports NBC News.
Trump’s legal team was told that the former president “shall not copy, disseminate or disclose” the material, including on social media, without getting approval by the court, reports The Hill.
Merchan further stated that Trump can view the information provided, but it has to be in the presence of his attorneys. His legal team was also instructed that Trump “shall not be permitted to copy, photograph, transcribe, or otherwise independently possess the Limited Dissemination Materials.”
These restrictions were first requested by prosecutors last month. Trump’s legal team argued that such restrictions would be a violation of Donald Trump’s First Amendment rights to free speech.
Clearly, Judge Merchan did not see it that way.
Alvin Bragg put together 34 felony counts by stacking line items on the ledger sheet. Realistically, this should have been no more than three charges, but Bragg decided to go for the dramatics by introducing every ledger entry as a felony account.
