The Trump Cases

The moment a judge threatened Trump with jail, from the trial transcript

“Mr. Trump, it’s important to understand that the last thing I want to do is to put you in jail,” New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan said at the trial.

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May 7, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. EDT
Former president Donald Trump attends his trial at Manhattan criminal court. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
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5 min

New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan warned Monday that Donald Trump could face jail time, saying that if the former president continued to violate a gag order the court would be forced to consider incarcerating him.

Trump is charged with falsifying business records to cover up an alleged affair with adult-film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. He has pleaded not guilty.

Trump New York hush money case

Former president Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial is underway in New York.

Key witnesses: Several key witnesses, including David Pecker and Stormy Daniels, have taken the stand. Here’s what Daniels said during her testimony. Read full transcripts from the trial.

Gag order: New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan has twice ruled that Trump violated his gag order, which prohibits him from commenting on jurors and witnesses in the case, among others. Here are all of the times Trump has violated the gag order.

The case: The investigation involves a $130,000 payment made to Daniels, an adult-film actress, during the 2016 presidential campaign. It’s one of many ongoing investigations involving Trump. Here are some of the key people in the case.

The charges: Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Falsifying business records is a felony in New York when there is an “intent to defraud” that includes an intent to “commit another crime or to aid or conceal” another crime. He has pleaded not guilty. Here’s what to know about the charges — and any potential sentence.