As we have stated before, Donald Trump's attorneys are now using every tool in the box to try to get these trials delayed, and they just lobbed a bombshell at Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg.
Trump's attorneys have charged Bragg with misconduct, comparing the treatment of Donald Trump to other targets, such as Michael Cohen and Allen Weisselberg.
Talking Points…
- Alvin Bragg charges against Trump
- Prosecutorial misconduct allegations levied
- Analysis
The indictment against Donald Trump that Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg filed came under scrutiny as soon as the papers were filed. Typically, in such a case, all ledger entries would be grouped into one charge. And from what I have seen in other cases, this usually winds up with a quick plea, a fine, a penalty, and everyone goes on their way.
Bragg, however, wanted to make headlines, so he did what is known as stacking charges. Instead of just lumping the ledger entries together, Bragg charged Trump individually for each entry, creating 34 felony counts against Trump. When he did this, he painted himself out to be the great defender of justice in New York, stating:
"Manhattan is home to the country's most significant business market.
"We cannot allow New York businesses to manipulate their records to cover up criminal conduct."
When the charges were announced in this fashion, Bragg was heavily criticized, with Fox News contributor and legal expert Jonathan Turley saying that all Bragg needed to do was get one charge to stick, and he could possibly be giving Trump a "terminal" sentence due to the fact that any sentence over 10 years would quite possibly mean that Trump dies in jail.
One would think that Trump's attorneys would have made this allegation out of the gate, but that would not have served the same purpose. By delaying these allegations against Bragg, they hope to drag the case out a bit longer.
With the legal calendar set, Trump's attorneys are trying to flip the table, so to speak, by filing these motions that could possibly cause further delays in the case. So, they have hit Bragg with prosecutorial misconduct, citing the difference in treatment from previous defendants and how Trump is being treated. The letter to Bragg stated:
"[The district attorney's] conscious choice to ignore obvious and admitted criminal conduct by Cohen and to instead deploy unethical, strong-armed tactics against an innocent man in his late 70s underscores the irresponsibility of your conduct in office.
"Indeed, while you waste public resources in a desperate attempt to impede President Trump's ongoing ascent to the White House, in violation of applicable prosecutorial guidelines prohibiting such election interference, you regularly and repeatedly allow those guilty of brutal attacks on law enforcement and murderers to roam free."
The complaint by the Trump attorneys also cited how Weisselberg, Donald Trump's former CFO, was squeezed by the DA office, treating him far differently than Michael Cohen, whom Trump's Defense team has accused of committing perjury. Weisselberg pleaded guilty to get a minor prison sentence rather than face arrest and a much longer sentence.
Now, I am not sure how much this will help Trump in this trial, but it will surely set up his appeal when the time comes. This is arguably the weakest case against Trump because of the way Bragg stacked the charges and how he took a far different approach than the "typical" case.
Whether Trump wins this case depends on the judge and jury he draws, but I still firmly believe that if he does lose the case on appeal, the decision will be either overturned or lessened due to the blatant tactics used by Bragg's office. As I stated above, this should be a fine, penalty, and a quick rap across the knuckles with the ruler, but nothing more than that.
