Stormy Weather TFG on Criminal Trial in NYC

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Updated Court Transcripts list. Sadly they're not indexed so we can skip pages.

https://pdfs.nycourts.gov/PeopleVs.DTru ... anscripts/

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
Good morning from New York.

Stormy Daniels finished her testimony. Karen McDougal's off the witness list, and on Thursday, trial proceedings wrapped with Madeleine Westerhout still on the stand.

I'm inside the courtroom, today and every day, picking up where we left off.

Explanation on McDougal, for those who missed the end of proceedings yesterday:

Without explanation, Trump's lead attorney Todd Blanche said prosecutors informed him they won't be calling her. The payoff to McDougal isn't directly tied to the 34 falsifying records charges.

Trump enters the courtroom, flanked by his lawyers.

"All rise."

Justice Merchan walks to the bench, and the attorneys register their appearances.

Per the press pool

Trump "gnored questions about whether he would accept Stormy's challenge to testify," at the morning press conference.

Later: "'If I put one wrong word in, they're gonna put me on jail,' he said, while trying to read from Byron York column.

Trump, per the pool: "I'll go now sit in that freezing courtroom for 8 or 9 hours and think about being on the campaign all day."

Honestly, during the first days of trial, Trump had a point on the temperature.

Now? Not so much.

The parties immediately have a lengthy sidebar conference.

(The official transcripts will probably be up later tonight as usual)

As the sidebar ends, Justice Merchan prompts: "Okay, let's get the witness, please."

Westerhout re-enters.

"All rise."

The jury is entering.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
·
8h
Trump's attorney Susan Necheles resumes her cross:

Westerhout speaks about her work with the RNC during Trump's campaign, and she agrees with Necheles' characterization that Trump and the party worked together as "one unit."

This was after Trump became the party's nominee.

On Thursday, Westerhout said the RNC considered plans to replace Trump after the "Access Hollywood" tape landed.

"It's my recollection that there were conversations about how to, if it was needed, how it would be possible to replace him as the candidate if it came to that."

It seemed that cross-examination was headed toward mitigating the blow of that testimony, but Necheles quickly pivoted to another subject following her questions about the RNC.

Prosecutors object to the admission of a piece of evidence, but it's unclear what it is.

They ask for a sidebar. They get one, and the parties huddle.

We're back.

Necheles shows Westerhout a travel schedule for Trump.

Prosecutors are fighting the admission of the travel schedules.

Westerhout says she didn't receive them, and asked whether she remembered the one she was shown, she said only since her lawyer showed it to her this morning. Not contemporaneously.

ADA Mangold: "We object."

Another sidebar follows.

Merchan, after the sidebar conference:

"Your motion to introduce this evidence is denied."

Q: Wasn't that a problem, getting mail to President Trump to the White House?
A: Yes.

Westerhout agrees with Trump's lawyer that the system of FedEx-ing checks to the former president's bodyguard Keith Schiller was a way to facilitate deliveries promptly.

It was a "workaround," Necheles says.

Westerhout agrees.

Service advisory: Wi-Fi down.

Toward the end of Westerhout's testimony, Trump's attorney asked a series of questions prompting her to say that the former president worried about the effect the Stormy Daniels story would have on his family.

It had a mixed result.

Westerhout duly agreed the matter upset Trump "because he knew it would be hurtful to his family" — but she also said he never told her that.

"I don’t think he specifically said that, but I could understand that the whole situation was very unpleasant," she said.

The second part of that answer was stricken following the prosecution's objection.

On redirect, Assistant DA Rebecca Mangold pushed back against the defense's claim that the FedEx-ed checks to Trump bodyguard Keith Schiller were simply a workaround for the slow process of White House mail.

The other benefit of system: Skipping the typical screening process.

Asked if the system would have that effect, Westerhout replied: "That’s right."

The prosecutor also elicited another detail about Westerhout's ongoing loyalty to Trump. She works for American Global Strategies, as Chief of Staff to the Chairman, Amb. Robert O’Brien.

O'Brien is a former National Security Advisor for Trump.

On recross, Necheles ended with the image of Trump as a family man.

Q: Just to reiterate: President Trump was very close to his family, right?
A: Yes.

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Up now for the prosecution:

— Daniel Dixon, another custodial witness who works as a compliance analyst AT&T

We're starting to see phone records.



On cross, Trump's lawyer Emil Bove presses the witness on alternative explanations for the records.

Q: You're familiar with the concept of a pocket dial, right?
A: Correct.

Q: There's a lot of data here, but the data has limits, right?
The witness says they are logs.

The witness ends his testimony.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg makes a rare entrance into the courtroom.

The next witness: Jennie Tomalin, at Verizon.

More phone records.

Morning recess.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
·
7h
Wi-Fi and backup appear to be down.

Expect delays.

The internet appears to be ready for the weekend.

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The People recall the DA's paralegal to introduce more Trump social media posts.

Trump's tweets denigrating Maggie Haberman and Michael Cohen are entered into evidence — also a tweet about Cohen suggesting that he won't flip.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
The last witness of the week: Jarden Jarmel-Schneider, another paralegal for the DA's office.

He's been called to submit a chart illustrating what the phone records show.

Once released, this will be an important exhibit.

Trump's lawyer Emil Bove cross-examines the witness, asking whether the rather painstaking work of putting vast reams of data together was tedious.

"Honestly, I kind of enjoyed it," the witness says, to laughter.

Bove: "I hear that. Respect." (laughter)

That does it for another week of witness testimony in Trump's criminal trial.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
·
5h
Assistant DA Joshua Steinglass says he plans to call two more witnesses:

"I think it's entirely possible that we will rest by the end of next week."

Trump's attorney Emil Bove notes that one of them isn't Allen Weisselberg, whose "absence" from this trial raises a "very complicated" question.

Bove wants to keep out their separation agreement as prejudicial hearsay.

Prosecutor Christopher Conroy says it's needed to show: "Mr. Weisselberg’s interests here are very aligned with the defendant’s."

During closing arguments, Conroy says, the defense is likely going to raise questions about Weisselberg's absence.

The prosecutor says the agreement explains his absence.

Bove says Weisselberg is absent "because the DA's office initiated perjury prosecution in the leadup to this case."

"It's just a rabbit hole that I think is unnecessary," he says.

Judge notes, without saying it this way, that there's no reason an incarcerated witness can't testify.

"Has anyone attempted to get him to come in, by serving him with a subpoena or some other way?" he asked.

Neither side has.

Bove points out the defense has no burden, and he resists some sort of negotiated stipulation informing jurors that Weisselberg is in jail for perjury.

The prosecutor resists subpoenaing him and putting him up there "cold," in light of his restrictive Trump Org agreement.



ADA Josh Steinglass says he's "repeatedly, repeatedly" asked the witnesses not to do this.

"The fact is, the witnesses are not subject to the gag order," and prosecutors cannot control them.

Justice Merchan:

"I would direct the People to inform Mr. Cohen that the judge is asking him" to refrain from making public statements about Trump — and that "comes from the bench."

With that, have a nice weekend...

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MemeWrangler
@BasketHerder
·
5h
PSA: You can access the Transcripts of this trial at https://pdfs.nycourts.gov/PeopleVs.DTru ... anscripts/

They take a couple of days to show up, but include the sidebar arguments.

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A little more detail from Phang about the Weisselberg situation (I thought Adam was a bit confusing)

Katie Phang
@KatiePhang
·
5h
After the jury is excused, the lawyers begin to argue over the admission into evidence of Allen Weisselberg's severance agreement.

BOVE: We are objecting to relevance, this agreement is after the fact and it is prejudicial, as he is in prison and not available anyway.

Prosecution: We’re looking to explain to the jury, from our perspective, why Weisselberg isn’t here…there are three payments due to Weisselberg this calendar year…if you look at the agreement in section 3b, "employee promises not to denigrate company verbally or in writing or any of its entities..."

[ME: In other words, if AW wants his severance payments, he cannot disparage any of its officers, directors, employees, etc." and "except for acts directly compelled by subpoena, he will not communicate with or otherwise cooperate with in any way, including through his counsel, with any person or entity with adverse claims against Trump." So that's why he isn't at the trial...]

CONROY: if [defense] counsel prefers, we’d be willing to stipulate that Weisselberg is in jail for perjury

MERCHAN: that would be one way to solve the problem

STEINGLASS: While it is true we could subpoena AW, the severance agreement precludes us from talking to him...That agreement has a “palpable connection” to why this could be an exercise in futility
MERCHAN: One way to deal with it is do it out of the presence of the jury and question him that way.
STEINGLASS: we’d still be calling a witness to the stand who is under no obligation to discuss his testimony with us.
MERCHAN: Right now we are “speculating” that he will honor the agreement, what advice he may be given by counsel. “It’s difficult to rule” right now.

BOVE: Mr. Weisselberg has never been on the govt witness list and then to get around and try to add him to the witness list...
MERCHAN: I don’t see how one thing has to do with the other, this is done with some frequency. The only way to know is to put him on the stand without the jury, under oath.
BOVE: We were entitled to notice of that long before this trial started
MERCHAN: You didn't think that was a possibility?
BOVE: “Not based on the witness list, no”

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Katie Phang
@KatiePhang

The lawyers then move on to the Defense complaining about Michael Cohen and Trump's gag order:

BLANCHE: With respect to Mr. Cohen, stating the obvious regarding the gag order, Mr Cohen continues to speak publicly about this trial and about Mr. Trump. we request that he be prohibited from talking the same way mr trump is, not only stop extrajudicial statement from lawyers but witnesses as well.

BLANCHE: “It’s becoming a problem every single day” that President Trump is not allowed to respond to cohen but cohen can keep talking. and he has stated he will stop talking but he doesnt and we ask the court to order him to stop talking until the case is over….

STEINGLASS: we have repeatedly asked the witnesses not to do that, not just Cohen, and we have no control over what they do,

MERCHAN: I would direct the people to communicate to Mr. Cohen that the judge is asking him to refrain from communicating about this case

STEINGALSS: We will do so

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During opening statements, prosecutor Matthew Colangelo promised jurors Cohen's account would be backed up by an "extensive paper trail of bank records, emails, text messages, phone logs, business documents and other records."

Colangelo also told jurors when trial began that Cohen's account would be corroborated by other witness testimony, along with Trump's books, speeches, and social media posts.

Trump's attorney Todd Blanche vowed to show jurors:

"The $35,000 a month was not a payback to Mr. Cohen for the money that he gave to Ms. Daniels."

Jurors have now seen two sworn statements by Trump — and one of the former president's tweets — all describing "reimbursement."

On April 22, Blanche also mentioned that Cohen "said that he wanted to see President Trump in an orange jumpsuit. That was last night."

History repeats itself: On Friday, Blanche complained that Cohen posted a TikTok of Trump in an orange jumpsuit—on the eve of testimony.

That earned Cohen a rebuke from Justice Merchan, who told prosecutors to convey that the judge asked him from the bench to stop doing that.

Cohen's social media swipes at Trump are almost certain to be an extensive part of cross-ex.

Now—

Trump enters the courtroom, stands next to the defense table and surveys the gallery.

In the front row behind him are Eric Trump and Alina Habba.

Making a rare appearance today:

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg

Bragg also appeared in court on Friday, during testimony by his paralegals entering evidence into the record backing up Cohen's account.

"All rise."

Justice Merchan enters, and the attorneys register their appearances.

Judge DENIES prosecutors' bid to allow Allen Weisselberg's separation agreement with the Trump Organization into evidence.

"This would be used to explain why somebody is not here," the judge notes.

Neither side has subpoenaed Weisselberg, who's jailed for perjury.

Prosecutors wanted to put the separation agreement into evidence to argue that it constrains what Weisselberg can say — and explain to jurors why they didn't call him.

With that out of the way, the court awaits the jury's entrance.

NOW

"The People call Michael Cohen."

Michael Cohen enters the courtroom, walks to the witness and raises his right hand to be sworn.

"Yes, I do," Cohen responds to the familiar vow.



When asked to identify Trump, Cohen stands up, cranes his neck and glances at the defense table.

He identifies Trump by his suit.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
·
6h
Cohen describes his early legal work at the firm Phillips, Nizer — and how he started working for Trump on "some legal" and "some non-legal matters."

Q: Did he pay you for that work?
A: No, ma'am.

Cohen says that after he broached billing Trump for that work when he was with Phillips, Nizer:

"He asked me if I wanted to get fired on the first day [...] if I asked about the bill."

Eventually, Cohen got the position of Trump's "special counsel," negotiating a salary of $375k base salary with a bonus to be discussed.

It ultimately added up to $525k, Cohen says.

Asked to whom he reported, Cohen said: "Just to Mr. Trump."

One Cohen's tasks on the job, he says, was renegotiating bills and invoices.

"He didn't believe that the invoice was fair, reasonable, justified," Cohen said. "He would give me the task of renegotiating a specific bill."

Cohen recalls Trump telling him, "It's fantastic. It's incredible," when he successfully renegotiated bills and invoices.

Q: How did that make you feel?
A: Like I was on top of the world.

Cohen testifies about threatening to sue companies and individuals for Trump, including someone from the Miss Universe pageant and reporters.

"I would express to them the need to redact or take the article down."

Referring to Cohen's threats to journalists, the prosecutor asks: "Did you do that in a strong and threatening manner sometimes?"

"I would say so, not all the time," Cohen says, slightly pausing before adding. "Often."



Asked whether Trump was a "micromanager," Cohen replies: "Yes, ma'am."

Cohen says he would call him "Boss" and "Mr. Trump."

"Working for him was an amazing experience in many, many ways," he says, describing the company as a "big family."

Asked whether Cohen lied for Trump, Cohen replies yes, because it was sometimes needed to "accomplish the task."

"The only thing that was on my mind was to accomplish the task, to keep him happy."

Prosecutor Hoffinger asks Cohen to authentic his cell phone numbers, suggesting text-message evidence can't be far away.

In addition to text messages previously entered into evidence, Cohen's phone logs also entered the record on Friday, showing him on the phone with Trump twice on Oct. 26, 2016.

That will be key evidence for prosecutors, and an almost-certain topic of Cohen's testimony.

Cohen testifies that he and Trump decided to sync his contacts into his phone, leading him to have more than 30K contacts in his phone at one time.

Cohen authenticates his email addresses, past and current.

Q: Mr. Cohen, do you know someone named David Pecker?
A: Yes, I do.

Cohen says he's known Pecker even longer than he's known Trump.

Cohen says that he and Pecker sometimes communicated via Signal, the encrypted messaging app that they thought would be untraceable.

Q: Would you say you had a good relationship with Mr. Pecker?
A: Yes, I would.

Cohen says that he also knew the Enquirer's then-editor in chief Dylan Howard, whom he remembers working for Pecker.

Cohen says he also chatted with Howard sometimes via Signal:

"For the same reason, it was a sensitive matter that we wanted to keep private."



Cohen: "One of the things that I noticed is that it's very white."

He says he started a National Diversity Coalition for Trump with Pastor Darrell Scott.

Cohen quotes Trump warning him that, as he announces his presidential campaign: "There's going to be a lot of women coming forward."

Questioning turns to what appears to be the Trump Tower meeting from August 2015.

Cohen quotes David Pecker saying at the meeting: "He would be able to help us know in advance what's coming out and stop it from coming out."

Cohen says Trump was pleased with the Enquirer's stories elevating him and trashing his then-primary rivals.

"It's fantastic. That's unbelievable," Cohen quotes Trump telling him.





Questioning turns to Trump's doorman Dino Sajudin, who was paid $30,000 to silence a false story about Trump supposedly having a child out of wedlock.

Asked whether Trump was grateful that AMI quashed that story, Cohen responds: "Absolutely."

Cohen describes reviewing Sajudin's agreement:

"I reviewed it to make sure that Mr. Trump was fully protected."

Cohen says he pushed for AMI to include a major liquidated damages penalty and a provision granting them the rights in perpetuity.

Q: Did AMI agree to include that term in the agreement as well?
A: They did.

Jurors are attentive — and the "tennis match" dynamic is fully visible from the gallery.

Their eyes dart to prosecutor Hoffinger, as she asks a question, and to Cohen, when he answers them. Their eyes hit the screens when there is evidence to review.

Questioning turns to Karen McDougal:

Cohen says he learned about her allegations through David Pecker and Dylan Howard — specifically, that she's a Playboy playmate and there was a story about a relationship she had with Trump.

Cohen says he talked to Trump about it "immediately"

He recalls saying, "Boss, I've got to talk to you," and telling Trump what he just learned.

"His response to me was, 'She's really beautiful.' [...] I said, "Okay, but there's a story that's right now being shopped."

Asked if Cohen drew any conclusions from Trump's remark, the defense objects.

Sustained.

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Cohen describes overhearing Trump's conversation with David Pecker.

"Instead of lifting up the phone, he used the speaker box, so I was able to hear."

Trump "asked how things were going with the matter," and Pecker said that things were under control.

Cohen recalled Pecker saying: "we'll take care of this."



Cohen says he told Trump that a "bulletproof" agreement had been finalized.

According to Cohen, Trump beamed: "Fantastic! Great job!"

Cohen says Pecker grew uneasy: "David had asked me when he should anticipate being paid back the $150,000."

"It was too much money for him to hide," Cohen recalled, noting he also paid $30,000 for Sajudin. "So he put pressure on me to speak to Mr. Trump to get the money back."

Asked whether Pecker urged him to get the money back, Cohen replied he wouldn't say Pecker "urged" so much as "insisted."

Q: Was he upset about it?
A: Very.

Q: Why did you think it was so important to tape this one conversation?

Cohen says he wanted to show Pecker that they were serious about reimbursing the money so Pecker would "remain loyal."

Cohen says he also was concerned about what stories Pecker could pull out about Trump from a "locked drawer" at AMI.



Rapt attention on the transcript from the jurors.

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Adam Klasfeld
@KlasfeldReports
·
5h
Asked about Trump's remark "pay with cash," Cohen says Trump thought it was "one way to avoid any sort of paper transaction — but I didn't think that was the best way to do it."

Morning recess