[ad_1]
CNN
—
The unusual legal dangers surrounding Donald Trump are increasingly dominated by criminal investigations in New York, Washington, and Atlanta, just as the former president makes headway in the 2024 Republican primary.
But there is no public information about when or if charges can be filed, leaving the former president and the public uneasy.
A Manhattan grand jury hearing evidence in the Trump case will not meet Wednesday, according to sources familiar with the case.
A source familiar with the investigation said New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office needed at least one witness lawyer to provide more testimony to a grand jury in the hush-money investigation in the last 24 hours. I suggested that it might
Expectations are rising that Bragg, a Democrat, is ready to make a decision at any moment on possible indictments against Trump over a hush-money payment scheme to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Bragg has said little about the status of the investigation or whether Trump will be indicted.
A grand jury in Manhattan typically hears testimony on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, but it’s not yet clear if they’ll meet on Thursday. However, I have not yet received a call to appear.
As the investigation nears its final stages, prosecutors are considering the historic nature of indicting the former president — an unprecedented act, a source told CNN. The DA’s office is taking some time to reorganize after the events of last week.
In another blow to Trump’s legal team, Trump’s lawyer, Evan Corcoran, will stand before a grand jury investigating classified documents found in Mar-a-Lago after a new order from the Federal Court of Appeals. He plans to testify on Friday, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. .
The DC Court of Appeals says Corcoran must provide additional testimony and present documents on the former president as part of a criminal investigation into possible mishandling of classified documents during Trump’s White House days. rice field.
The sources said Trump’s side is unlikely to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Less than a day after Trump called for Corcoran’s testimony to be withheld, the special counsel’s investigation gained momentum with the announcement of a three-judge panel in the Court of Appeals. Trump.
City and federal officials ramped up security after Trump posted a protest on his behalf last weekend, continuing discussions over possible demonstrations and how to deal with the logistics of the arrested former president. ing. Even if an indictment is filed this week, the court proceedings won’t take place until next week, sources said.
Meet Manhattan’s DA who may be the first prosecutor to indict former US president
DA has not publicly commented on the status or pace of the investigation. But recent testimony by witnesses requested by the former president’s legal team and an offer to allow Trump himself to testify indicated that Bragg was nearing a decision to indict.
Attorney Robert Costello appeared on behalf of Trump to testify Monday and cast doubt on testimony from Michael Cohen, a key witness for the prosecution. Cohen left uninvited, leaving the door open to be recalled if the prosecutor believed he needed him.
Correspondence between Daniels and Joe Tacopina, an attorney currently representing Trump, has been turned over to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, Daniels’ attorney told CNN. The exchange, which is said to date back to 2018 when Daniels sought representation, increases the likelihood that Tacopina will be excluded from Trump’s defense in the case.
At his Mar-a-Lago home, Trump appears to have resigned due to possible indictment by the Manhattan District Attorney. Trump has praised how it helps him politically and complained about how “unfair” it is, according to sources close to the former president.
Meanwhile, Trump is the focus of another investigation into the handling of classified documents, led by Special Counsel Jack Smith. Wednesday’s appeals court decision that Corcoran must testify before a grand jury investigating the matter followed a surge in activity in response to a major verdict from a district court judge. The ruling shows the Justice Department was successful in claiming it had evidence that Trump may have committed a crime, a source familiar with the matter told CNN.
A trio of appeals court judges briefed the Justice Department and Trump’s attorneys in just hours about DOJ pressure to force Corcoran to testify. .
Corcoran has previously testified and declined to answer some questions, citing attorney-client privilege.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the documents at issue in the case are Corcoran’s handwritten notes and transcribed verbal notes, which concern Trump’s agents in the Mar-a-Lago investigation.
It is not entirely known what Corcoran’s testimony and documents reveal.
The special counsel’s case could pose a more serious legal threat to the president, but the Manhattan District Attorney appears closest to indictment. Amid uncertainty over how the years-long investigation will end, several advisers to the former president have warned of a lack of information about potential indictments and a possible trial in New York where Trump will be arraigned. He expressed dissatisfaction with the logistical complexity involved in court appearances.
“We plan everything we can. When will he say what?” another adviser told CNN. “Right now, there’s not much we can really plan.”
Trump’s attorneys are seeking to undermine an investigation into Georgia’s former president over efforts to overturn the 2020 election in Georgia. asked the judge to destroy his final report and evidence.
A possible indictment of Trump in New York has not affected the pace of prosecution decisions in the Fulton County case, in which case he could be indicted as early as this spring, CNN previously reported.
This story has been updated with additional developments.
[ad_2]
Source link