As jury selection commenced on Monday for the hush money case involving former President Trump in New York, legal experts are calling it a 'Frankenstein case.' Jonathan Turley, a law professor, described the case as a unique situation where a 'dead misdemeanor' and a 'dead alleged felony' have been combined to revive the legal proceedings.
Turley expressed surprise at the unconventional nature of the case, stating that it does not align with typical criminal charges. The Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, is accused of resurrecting a state misdemeanor that had expired due to the statute of limitations by linking it to alleged false filings on business records related to a federal election crime.
However, the federal government has not pursued charges in this regard, leading to confusion among legal experts about the basis of the indictment. The trial is expected to be equally unusual, given the ambiguous nature of the alleged crimes and the lack of clarity on the prosecution's theory.
Judge to Consider Gag Order Violation
In a separate development, the judge overseeing the hush money trial announced that he will evaluate whether Trump violated a gag order imposed in the case. Judge Juan Merchan scheduled a hearing for April 23 to address the alleged breaches of the order, which prohibits Trump from making public statements about witnesses and their testimonies.
The district attorney's office has accused Trump of violating the gag order three times through social media posts and has requested fines of $1,000 for each violation. Prosecutors are seeking Trump's compliance with the order and have raised the possibility of holding him in contempt for disregarding the court's directives.
