The twice-impeached and four-times indicted former President Donald Trump faced a modicum of legal repercussions Tuesday as a judge held him in criminal contempt for violating a gag order through posts on his social media platform Truth Social.
New York County Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan delivered the ruling, citing nine instances where Trump’s posts attacked jurors and witnesses, breaching the court’s order. Each violation incurred a $1,000 fine, with Merchan warning of possible incarceration for further transgressions.
The gag order, in effect since April 1, prohibits Trump from making public statements about witnesses or prospective jurors involved in the investigation or the criminal proceeding.
Prosecutors from the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office accused Trump of flouting the order at least 10 times since its implementation. Among the cited posts were attacks targeting expected witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels, whom the former president allegedly engaged in an extramarital affair.
Prosecutors requested Trump remove the offending posts and asked the judge to warn him about potential jail time for future violations.
During an April 23 hearing, prosecutor Chris Conroy suggested Trump might be seeking incarceration for political purposes. Trump’s legal team countered that he had not willfully violated the order but was reacting to political attacks.
Pressed by the judge, Trump’s attorney struggled to provide examples of the alleged attacks to which Trump was responding.
The former president and current Republican presidential candidate has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records related to reimbursing Cohen for the hush money payment to Daniels during the 2016 campaign.
If convicted, Trump could face up to four years in prison. However, outside the courtroom, he continued engaging in political discourse, discussing his recent Time Magazine interview, and criticizing ongoing protests on college campuses.
In the interview, Trump outlined his agenda if re-elected, criticized pro-Palestinian protests on campuses, and expressed concerns about potential election-related violence.
“This whole country is up in arms breaking into colleges … they took over a building,” he said, referring to a recent occupation of a building at Columbia University by pro-Palestinian students.
Trump, who has spearheaded a significant resurgence of race-related issues in America, also suggested there is an “anti-white feeling” in the country and hinted at potential violence surrounding the election.
“If we don’t win, you know, it depends,” he said when asked whether he’d encourage violence from his supporters. “It always depends on the fairness of the election.”
