Thread: Legal Charges Against Trump

One comforting fact this early morning. More later......

Federal prosecutors have a 99.6% conviction rate.

Early evening feel good fact.

In federal court you will have to serve 85% of your sentence if convicted of federal charges.

trump will die in prison

2024 – 2028: Biden
2028 – 2032: Newsom
2032 – 2036: Newsom

This baldy orange cunto speech is hilarious. He clearly doesn't understand most of what he's reading off the autocue.

• Trump pleads not guilty in classified documents case

Former President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty Tuesday to federal criminal charges that he hoarded classified military secrets at his estate in Mar-a-Lago and hindered the government’s attempts to get them back.

“Your honor, we most certainly enter a plea of not guilty,” Trump’s lawyer Todd Blanche told the federal magistrate judge who presided over Trump’s 48-minute arraignment. Trump, who wore a blue suit and red tie, did not speak during the hearing.

After the arraignment, Trump was released without having to post bond. Prosecutors did not ask for any significant pretrial conditions, such as restrictions on his travel or the surrender of his passport. The magistrate judge, Jonathan Goodman, did order Trump not to discuss the case with potential witnesses outside the presence of his lawyers.

Trump faces 37 felony charges: 31 counts of willful retention of national security records and six counts for allegedly obstructing the federal effort to recover those documents. It is the first time in American history that a former president has been charged by the government he once led.

It is not Trump’s first indictment, though. Just 10 weeks ago, Manhattan prosecutors charged Trump with 34 felonies under New York law for allegedly falsifying business records in connection with hush money payments to a porn star.

Trump now faces parallel criminal cases — not to mention two other ongoing criminal probes into his role in 2020 election interference — as he mounts his bid to regain the White House in 2024.

If found guilty in the documents case, Trump could face a lengthy prison term.

Shortly after he arrived at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. federal courthouse in Miami on Tuesday afternoon, authorities booked Trump and his co-defendant, Walt Nauta, who is a longtime Trump aide and is accused of conspiring with Trump to obstruct the grand jury investigation into his alleged retention of highly classified military secrets. Nauta faces six felony counts.

The arraignment will trigger a lengthy pretrial process as prosecutors and Trump’s lawyers attempt to hammer out agreements on evidence in the case and schedule a trial.

In the hours leading up to Trump’s arrival, a familiar tension was in the air, as security forces and police ramped up patrols around the courthouse and warned against street clashes and other potential dangers. The atmosphere was reminiscent of Trump’s first arraignment at a courthouse in lower Manhattan.

Reporters and interested members of the public began lining up at the Miami courthouse on Monday night hoping for a seat in the small courtroom where Trump’s arraignment would occur. The federal judges who work in the courthouse expected massive crowds. The court set up extra “overflow” rooms and adopted new, one-day restrictions on journalists carrying electronics. No cameras are allowed inside.

Trump has spent the days since last week’s indictment assailing the Justice Department and seeking, despite the evidence arrayed against him, to cast the prosecution as politically motivated. He has lobbed particularly pointed invective at special counsel Jack Smith, who is leading the investigation.

That continued Tuesday, with Trump suggesting — also without evidence — that investigators planted evidence in his home, a case he and his lawyers have notably refused to make in a courtroom.

“They taint everything that they touch, including our country, which is rapidly going to HELL!” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday morning.

Trump’s odyssey through the legal system is only beginning. The New York hush money case is slated for trial in March 2024, and he faces two other investigations into his role in 2020 election meddling.

Tuesday’s arraignment may provide clues on a crucial question: how swiftly the documents case might proceed to trial. Smith has said he hopes to pursue a “speedy trial” but the complexity of the evidence involved — much of which remains classified — may lengthen the time it takes to resolve pretrial matters.

Among the issues still in flux: Trump’s own legal team. He is being accompanied Tuesday by attorneys Christopher Kise and Todd Blanche, but he’s been actively looking for additional attorneys since the core of his team handling the documents case resigned. Tim Parlatore quit the team last month amid internal dispute, and two other lawyers — John Rowley and Jim Trusty — resigned around the time of Trump’s indictment.

Outside the courthouse, the tension and theatricality built slowly throughout the day. Armed security personnel were visible all around the courthouse. There were several hundred protesters at the courthouse when Trump arrived, many expressing their support for the former president.

Trump supporters wore shirts backing Trump, saying that he will “give you a war you can’t believe” or “stomp my flag and I’ll stomp your face.” There were also people carrying signs reading vlock him up” and “Orange is the new Trump,” a reference to the Netflix show and memoir about a woman who goes to federal prison. At one point, a man draped in an American flag carried a large stick with a pig’s head impaled on it. Throughout the day, people drove past the courthouse honking horns.

The demonstrations were largely peaceful, with many shouting “we want Trump” when the former president’s motorcade arrived at the courthouse.

A Trump impersonator showed up, as did a man in an Uncle Sam getup who rode around on a hover board, singing remade lyrics to Elton John”s hit “Rocketman” saying that Biden is a “puppet man.”

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In other news........

“Karma is Jack Smith.”

Originally Posted by S Landreth

The demonstrations were largely peaceful, with many shouting “we want Trump” when the former president’s motorcade arrived at the courthouse.

In spite of all the media hype about possible storming of the courthouse by Trump supporters. I find it interesting the media completely silent about the potential of some gun toting anti Trump nut taking Trump out permanently.

Originally Posted by S Landreth

trump will die in prison

Nope. Biden will pardon him to "heal the country".

Won't work of course, but he'll still do it.

Trump will decline the pardon to own the libs

Originally Posted by Norton

In spite of all the media hype about possible storming of the courthouse by Trump supporters. I find it interesting the media completely silent about the potential of some gun toting anti Trump nut taking Trump out permanently.

In fairness you'd need an elephant gun to penetrate all those layers of blubber, so it would be easy to spot.

Next

• Nevada 'fake electors' appear before D.C. Jan. 6 grand jury

With Donald Trump set to appear in Miami for one set of federal charges, back in Washington, another grand jury investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol and Trump’s efforts to stay in office is also moving ahead in full force.

Nevada GOP Chair Michael McDonald, a close Trump political ally, as well as Jim DeGraffenreid, the state party’s vice chair, were spotted by NBC News entering the area where the Jan. 6 jury is meeting at the Washington federal courthouse Tuesday.

When asked about having to appear the same day as Trump’s court date, McDonald joked to an NBC News reporter: “Not on my bucket list.” McDonald had previously confirmed to NBC News that federal authorities seized his cellphone as part of the investigation.

The appearance comes a week after former Trump White House official Steve Bannon was subpoenaed by a federal grand jury in Washington in connection with special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into Jan. 6. The Bannon subpoena, for documents and testimony, was sent out late last month, the sources said.

In addition, at least one former Trump White House aide testified on June 1 before the grand jury, hearing evidence about the former president in its ongoing investigation surrounding the election, according to a source familiar with the appearance. The testimony focused on Trump's firing of Christopher Krebs in 2020. At the time, Krebs led the federal government’s election cybersecurity efforts and debunked false claims of election fraud and hacking.

Mike Pence also testified before the grand jury in April.

The grand jury investigating Trump’s actions surrounding the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, and in connection with efforts to interfere with the peaceful transfer of power, is separate from the grand jury in Miami that heard testimony Wednesday about his handling of classified documents.

McDonald has a close personal friendship with Trump, and in recent months, he had visited Mar-a-Lago as part of a Nevada delegation Trump was courting for endorsements. McDonald had testified before the Jan. 6 Select Committee, where he invoked his Fifth Amendment right more than 200 times.

Both McDonald and DeGraffenreid served as so-called fake electors, slates of electors who in most cases signed certification documents purporting that Trump had won in their states even though he had lost.

E. Jean Carroll can amend Trump defamation suit after CNN town hall

Judge grants E. Jean Carroll’s request to amend $10 million complaint against Trump after CNN town hall remarks

A federal judge Tuesday granted writer E. Jean Carroll’s request to amend her original defamation lawsuit against former President Donald Trump to include comments he made about her in a CNN town hall last month.

The order from Judge Lewis Kaplan in U.S. District Court in Manhattan is a blow to Trump, who had asked the court to deny Carroll’s effort to update her lawsuit, which now seeks at least $10 million in damages.

The judge’s decision was made public shortly after Trump pleaded not guilty to federal criminal charges during a historic arraignment in Miami.

“We look forward to moving ahead expeditiously on E. Jean Carroll’s remaining claims,” Carroll’s attorney, Roberta Kaplan, who is not related to the judge, said in a statement to CNBC following the latest order Tuesday afternoon.

Alina Habba, an attorney for Trump, said in a statement to NBC News, “We maintain that she should not be permitted to retroactively change her legal theory, at the eleventh hour, to avoid the consequences of an adverse finding against her.”

Carroll sought to amend her lawsuit shortly after Trump unloaded a barrage of disparaging remarks about her during a live town hall on CNN on May 10.

“What kind of a woman meets somebody and brings them up and within minutes, you’re playing hanky-panky in a dressing room, OK?” Trump said during that event. “I swear on my children, which I never do, I have no idea who this woman is. This is a fake story, made-up story.”

That much-criticized town hall came one day after a jury in a separate civil case found Trump liable for sexual abuse and defamation against Carroll and ordered him to pay her $5 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

The writer has accused the former president of raping her in a department store in the mid-1990s and then defaming her after she came forward with her allegations in 2019. She filed a civil defamation lawsuit against him in 2019, and then filed a second civil lawsuit against him in 2022 that also included a charge of battery.

Less than two weeks after the CNN town hall, Carroll’s lawyers asked Judge Kaplan to let her amend her original civil complaint to include Trump’s most recent comments, arguing that “the facts and circumstances have changed.”

Trump has denied raping Carroll. He has moved to appeal the verdict in Carroll’s second case.

E. Jean Carroll's defamation trial against Trump set for Jan. 2024

A federal judge on Thursday set E. Jean Carroll's second defamation trial against former President Donald Trump for early next year.

In a brief scheduling order, U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said the civil trial will commence on Jan. 15.

Kaplan had granted Carroll’s motion to file an amended complaint Tuesday in the still-pending case against Trump seeking new damages of at least $10 million, based in part on comments he made at a CNN town hall last month.

The defamation case is one in a series of coming trials involving Trump.

The New York attorney general's $250 million lawsuit accusing Trump of attempting to inflate his personal net worth to attract favorable loan agreements is scheduled to go to trial in October. Trump has called the investigation a "witch hunt."

In March, the Manhattan district attorney’s hush money case, which charges that Trump falsified business records related to his alleged role in making hush-money payments to two women before the 2016 election, is scheduled to go to trial in March. Trump has pleaded not guilty.

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Originally Posted by Norton

In spite of all the media hype about possible storming of the courthouse by Trump supporters. I find it interesting the media completely silent about the potential of some gun toting anti Trump nut taking Trump out permanently.

The Miami and Metro Dade police did well at the courthouse. But then again, it was a small group of trump and anti-trump supporters. Hell, the media teams might have been larger than both groups.

There was only one incident I saw that was quickly dealt with.

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Donald Trump Visits Versailles Cuban Restaurant in Miami After Federal Indictment

That Time Donald Trump Promised "Food for Everyone" at Versailles

Donald Trump was in Miami yesterday to plead not guilty to 37 counts in a felony case that alleges he illegally hoarded classified documents from his time in the White House.

The former president was fingerprinted and arraigned at the Wilkie D. Ferguson Jr. U.S. Courthouse in downtown Miami. And, no matter what side of the political fence you stand on, it's a fact that after a hard day in court, you need a little break.

Trump opted to decompress with a trip to Versailles in Little Havana. The iconic restaurant has long been a pit stop for politicians seeking to curry favor with Miami's Cuban voters.

The local press was on hand to capture footage of the large crowd milling outside to greet their man. Inside the bakery, Trump supporters fawned over their man, regaling the soon-to-turn-77-year-old with a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday" a day early and holding a group prayer. Former MMA fighter Jorge Masvidal, sporting a University of Miami ball cap, hailed Trump as "everybody's favorite president of all time" after embracing the former leader of the free world.

A glad-handing Trump was heard to declare, "Food for everyone!"

So, New Times wondered, did Trump — who famously fancies his chicken from KFC and his steaks well-done and slathered with ketchup but isn't exactly known for picking up the check — treat his fan club to a spread of croquetas, pastelitos, and cubanos chased with cafecitos?

It turns out no one got anything. Not even a cafecito to-go.

Jim Trusty is now withdrawing from Trump's lawsuit against CNN, citing "irreconcilable differences"

DocumentCloud

Trump lashes out at Lincoln Project 'perverts' after new ad mocks his indictment

Miami Restaurant Flooded With Negative Reviews After Donald Trump Visit

Bruce Reinhart OKs Jack Smith protective order in Trump case

Magistrate judge signs off on special counsel’s proposal to keep discovery off of Trump’s social media and shield identities of ‘uncharged individuals’

The U.S. magistrate judge assisting U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon in the Espionage Act federal prosecution of former President Donald Trump signed off on a protective order proposed by Special Counsel Jack Smith, meaning that any knowing impermissible disclosure of discovery by “Defendants, Defense Counsel, and Authorized Persons” could lead to contempt proceeding or sanctions — civil or criminal.

In a late Friday filing, the special counsel’s office proposed a broad protective order to shield sensitive information as prosecutors turn over information to the defense, as the former president stands accused of alleged violations of the Espionage Act, conspiracy to obstruct justice, false statements and more. Judge Cannon had referred the protective order motion to U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart — the judge who signed off on the FBI’s search of Mar-a-Lago last August — for “appropriate disposition.”

The protective order, a standard part of criminal procedure and especially in national security cases, says that the discovery materials in the Mar-a-Lago case: Must not be used for any purpose other than the defense of the case; must be stored “securely with labels that make it clear that the materials are subject to the Order”; must not be disclosed “directly or indirectly to any person or entity other than persons employed to assist in the defense, persons who are interviewed as potential witnesses, counsel for potential witnesses, and other persons to whom the Court may authorize disclosure (collectively, ‘Authorized Persons’)”; “shall not” be copied or reproduced by defendants et al. “except as necessary to prepare for the defense”; “shall not be disclosed to the public or the news media, or disseminated on any news or social media platform, without prior notice to and consent of the United States or approval of the Court”; and, finally, “all Discovery Materials and all copies thereof shall be destroyed by Defense Counsel or returned to the United States, unless otherwise ordered by the Court” within 90 days of the “end of all stages of this case, including all related appeals.”

https://s3.documentcloud.org/documen...tive-order.pdf

An American lawyers opinion on this accusation.

opinion

^

Opinion

"a thought or belief about something or someone"

OPINION | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary

How deep will that hole be

• Trump on why he didn't return classified documents: "I was very busy"

Former President Trump in his first interview since being indicted in Miami last week on federal charges fiercely defended on Monday taking classified documents with him to his Mar-a-Lago resort after leaving the White House.

Driving the news: Fox News' Bret Baier asked Trump why he didn't hand over the boxes containing classified materials to the National Archives and Records Administration. "I wanted to go through the boxes and get all of my personal things out," he replied.

• "I don't want to hand that over to NARA yet," Trump added. "And I was very busy, as you’ve sort of seen."

The big picture: Trump pleaded not guilty in a Miami court last week to 37 criminal charges related to retaining classified information and obstruction of justice.

Of note: Baier noted that the federal indictment alleges Trump told an aide to move the boxes of classified documents to other locations after telling his lawyers to say he'd fully complied with the subpoena when he hadn't.

• "Before I send boxes over, I have to take all of my things out," Trump said. "These boxes were interspersed with all sorts of things — golf shirts, clothing, pants, shoes, there were many things."

• Judge sets Aug. 14 trial date for Trump documents case

A Florida judge has set an initial Aug. 14 trial date for former President Trump in the Justice Department’s (DOJ) case over his retention of classified documents.

Judge Aileen Cannon set the preliminary trial date for roughly two months after Trump’s arraignment at her courtroom in Fort Pierce, Fla. The judge said in a Tuesday filing that all pre-trial motions must be filed by July 24.

Trump and his team are expected to push to delay the trial through those motions, however, making it unlikely that the Aug. 14 date will hold.

Trump pleaded not guilty last Tuesday to charges on 37 counts following a DOJ indictment alleging he violated both the Espionage Act and obstructed justice in taking classified records from his presidency and refusing to return them. He is also facing charges for concealing documents and misleading investigators.

Special counsel Jack Smith has said Trump’s trial could be completed in as little as 21 days.

But Trump — known for successfully delaying numerous prior civil suits — has a number of options for time-eating challenges in the case.

The classified documents at issue in the case ignite a separate discovery process under the Classified Information Procedures Act (CIPA), including a requirement under Section 5 of the law that requires Trump’s team to give a preview of their defense.

“Trump’s team will likely argue that the CIPA Section 5 notice requirement is unconstitutional, because it requires them to give some sort of notice of their defense to the government. That argument has been resoundingly rejected by the courts, but it will still be made by the Trump team,” Brian Greer, a former CIA attorney, previously told The Hill.

Another likely battle is whether the prosecution can use the silent witness rule — a method of having experts testify in broad strokes about the classified records so that they can avoid declassifying them or making them public.

Trump’s team is likely to push to declassify the evidence in the hopes the DOJ will drop some of its charges.

“They will want to put pressure on the government to have to declassify as much information as possible for trial,” Greer said. “If Trump’s lawyers get the court to rule that any document that he is charged with has to be declassified in order to be used at trial, it might cause the Department of Justice to rethink some charges.”

Trump’s legal team will also need to secure clearances ahead of the discovery process, a task that even when expedited will cause delays.

The date set by Cannon falls in line with a defendant’s right to trial within 70 days of arraignment. As Trump’s team files motions that ignite new deadlines, the trial date will get pushed back.

Cannon’s order is the second in the case in as many days; federal Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart sided with the DOJ on Monday in ordering Trump to refrain from disclosing any evidence in the trial. His order also only allows Trump to view the classified discovery in the case under the supervision of his attorneys.

https://storage.courtlistener.com/re...48652.28.0.pdf

Originally Posted by S Landreth

How deep will that hole be

• Trump on why he didn't return classified documents: "I was very busy"

Former President Trump in his first interview since being indicted in Miami last week on federal charges fiercely defended on Monday taking classified documents with him to his Mar-a-Lago resort after leaving the White House.

Driving the news: Fox News' Bret Baier asked Trump why he didn't hand over the boxes containing classified materials to the National Archives and Records Administration. "I wanted to go through the boxes and get all of my personal things out," he replied.

• "I don't want to hand that over to NARA yet," Trump added. "And I was very busy, as you’ve sort of seen."

The big picture: Trump pleaded not guilty in a Miami court last week to 37 criminal charges related to retaining classified information and obstruction of justice.

Of note: Baier noted that the federal indictment alleges Trump told an aide to move the boxes of classified documents to other locations after telling his lawyers to say he'd fully complied with the subpoena when he hadn't.

• "Before I send boxes over, I have to take all of my things out," Trump said. "These boxes were interspersed with all sorts of things — golf shirts, clothing, pants, shoes, there were many things."

One question he should have asked him is "Why were classified documents containing national secrets packed with golf shirts and other items? " Seems pretty sloppy for the past leader of the free world.

^he's a pig

Special counsel in documents probe hands over 1st discovery materials to Trump's team

• Senate Democrat on new filing in documents case: Trump lawyers will have ‘bad Christmas’

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) said attorneys for former President Trump in the classified and sensitive documents case will have a “bad Christmas” following a recent filing that hints prosecutors have additional evidence beyond what was previously known.

A court filing from Wednesday states that special counsel Jack Smith has begun providing the evidence he plans to use to Trump, including multiple interviews of the former president, which seems to indicate the government has recordings of Trump discussing the documents he held at Mar-a-Lago beyond what is mentioned in the indictment.

Whitehouse told MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell in an interview Wednesday that the filing tells him Smith has a strong case and feels comfortable turning over the evidence early in the process.

“It tells me that there’s gonna be bad Christmas for the Trump lawyers as they open the different files of evidence and find out how awful the evidence is against their client,” he said.

“And it tells me that they want to get Trump’s attention early, by getting his lawyers the evidence that they need to be able to go to their client and say, ‘Hey, you are in real trouble here,’” Whitehouse continued.

Judge Aileen Cannon has set a preliminary trial date for the case Aug. 14, but Trump’s team will likely delay the trial past then through pre-trial motions.

Trump was indicted on 37 federal charges earlier this month in relation to his handling of the documents that were taken from the White House to Mar-a-Lago after his presidency, including 31 counts of willful retention of national defense information in violation of the Espionage Act. He has also been charged with obstructing the investigation into his retention of the documents.

The indictment alleges that Trump had documents containing military secrets and information on U.S. nuclear programs, pushed his attorneys to help cover up that he had the documents, and showed sensitive documents to people who were not authorized to see them at least twice.

Trump has maintained that he did not commit any wrongdoing in the case and the charges are politically motivated.

Smith defended the integrity of the Justice Department and FBI after the indictment was unsealed and emphasized the “scope” and “gravity” of the charges outlined in the indictment.

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Some details: https://storage.courtlistener.com/re...48654.30.0.pdf

The government responds to the specific items identified in the standard discovery order as set forth below.

A - 1. Production 1 includes a copy of any written or recorded statements made by the defendants. These statements include the following:

• Interviews of Defendant Trump conducted by non-government entities, which were recorded with his consent and obtained by the Special Counsel’s Office during the investigation of this case, including the July 21, 2021 recorded interview Defendant Trump provided to a publisher and writer quoted in part in the Indictment;

• Public statements made by Defendant Trump, including the public statements quoted in the Indictment;

• The May 26, 2022 FBI interview of Defendant Nauta, which is quoted in the Indictment; and

• The June 21, 2022 grand jury testimony of Defendant Nauta.

2. Other than the two statements of Defendant Nauta identified in paragraph A.1, there are no relevant oral statements made by either defendant before or after arrest in response to interrogation by any person then known to the defendants to be a government agent that the government intends to use at trial.

• Exclusive: Special counsel trades immunity for fake elector testimony as Jan 6 probe heats up

Special counsel Jack Smith has compelled at least two Republican fake electors to testify to a federal grand jury in Washington in recent weeks by giving them limited immunity, part of a current push by federal prosecutors to swiftly nail down evidence in the sprawling criminal investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

The testimony, described to CNN by people familiar with the situation, comes after a year of relative dormancy around the fake electors portion of the investigation and as a parade of related witnesses are being told to appear before the grand jury with no chance for delay.

That activity could signal that investigators are nearing at least some charging decisions in a part of the 2020 election probe, sources added. It also comes just as the special counsel’s office filed charges against former President Donald Trump for his handling of classified documents.

Prosecutors initially obtained documents and interviews last spring from many of the Republicans who signed false certificates to the federal government, asserting they were the rightful electors for Trump in seven battleground states won by Joe Biden.

Prosecutors have played hardball with some of the witnesses in recent weeks, refusing to grant extensions to grand jury subpoenas for testimony and demanding they comply before the end of this month, sources said. In the situations where prosecutors have given witnesses immunity, the special counsel’s office arrived at the courthouse in Washington ready to compel their testimony after the witnesses indicated they would decline to answer questions under the Fifth Amendment, the sources added.

Much more in the link above.

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• Trump’s push for new sexual abuse trial is ‘magical thinking,’ E Jean Carroll says

Donald Trump’s push for a new trial in the civil case in which a Manhattan jury last month found the former US president sexually abused and defamed the writer E Jean Carroll is “magical thinking”, Carroll’s lawyers said on Thursday.

Trump, the frontrunner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, on 8 June asked for a new trial after the jury awarded Carroll $5m, saying the damages were excessive because the jury did not find she was raped and because the alleged conduct did not cause her a diagnosed mental injury.

In court papers filed on Thursday in opposition to Trump’s request, Carroll’s lawyers maintained that the attack had harmed her ability to have romantic and sexual relationships, and she had suffered intrusive memories.

They pointed to a psychologist’s testimony at trial that Carroll had some symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

“Trump’s motion is nothing more than his latest effort to obfuscate the import of the jury’s verdict by engaging in his own particular Trump-branded form of magical thinking,” her lawyers wrote.

Trump’s lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Carroll’s lawsuit, filed in 2022, said Trump raped her in a dressing room at the Bergdorf Goodman department store in New York in the mid-1990s, and defamed her by denying it happened. Trump has called Carroll’s claims a “hoax”.

Carroll, a former Elle magazine advice columnist, filed a separate lawsuit in November 2019 for defamation only.

That case has been bogged down in appeals over whether Trump was immune from being sued because he had been president when he spoke. Carroll updated that lawsuit to seek $10m from Trump after he called Carroll’s account “fake” and labeled her a “whack job” in a CNN town hall after the jury’s verdict in the 2022 lawsuit.

The case is one of several legal woes facing Trump, the first current or former US president to face criminal charges, as he seeks to return to the White House.

Last week, he pleaded not guilty to 37 federal counts of retaining national defense documents at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida and obstructing an investigation into his conduct. In April, he pleaded not guilty to New York state charges stemming from a 2016 hush money payment to a porn star.

Legal experts: Court filing suggests Jack Smith plans to use Trump's public statements against him