JUST IN: Trump’s Legal Team Motions For Mistrial After Stormy Daniels’ Testimony

Amid heated courtroom proceedings, defense attorneys representing former President Donald Trump sought a mistrial after Stormy Daniels’ testimony on Tuesday morning. Todd Blanche, Trump’s lead counsel, argued that Daniels’ testimony had a prejudicial impact and cast undue bias on the case.

After the lunch recess, Blanche reiterated his concerns to Judge Juan Merchan, saying that Daniels’ remarks about her alleged 2006 affair with Trump could not be remedied and would unfairly influence the jury. Despite the objections, Merchan said that he was taking every possible measure to maintain order and impartiality, including personally objecting to some of Daniels’ statements.

Ultimately, Judge Merchan denied Blanche’s request for a mistrial following Stormy Daniels’ testimony, asserting, “I don’t believe we’re at the point where a mistrial is warranted,” according to The Associated Press. As Judge Merchan denied the request for a mistrial, former President Trump shook his head in disapproval and then scribbled a note on a piece of paper. He passed it over to his attorney, sharing his thoughts on the ruling as the proceedings continued.

While the judge acknowledged Blanche’s concerns and admitted that Daniels occasionally overstepped her boundaries, he attributed some responsibility to the defense for not objecting more forcefully during her testimony. “I agree there are some things that would’ve been better left unsaid,” Merchan remarked, recognizing that the “witness was a little difficult to control.”

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At one point, Merchan intervened proactively, objecting on his own to prevent Daniels from revealing excessive details, rather than waiting for a formal objection from the defense. Judge Merchan said that he would provide an instruction to the jurors, who were not yet present in the courtroom, warning them about Daniels’ testimony in which she claimed to have been accosted and threatened in a parking lot in 2011.

The judge was also surprised at the lack of defense objections during Daniels’ testimony. “When you say the bell has been rung, the defense has to take some responsibility for that,” Merchan said.

Trump’s legal team argued that Daniels violated established rules for her testimony. This marked the first instance where Trump’s team has requested a mistrial. Defense attorney Todd Blanche said that Daniels’ account of the alleged sexual encounter and her detailed description of preceding conversations and other meetings with Trump had “nothing to do with this case and is extremely prejudicial.”

Blanche stated that “the court set guardrails for this testimony,” but they were “just thrown to the side.”

“This is the kind of testimony that makes it impossible to come back from,” he added, noting that it is also “unfair” since Trump is scheduled to be on the campaign trail later today.

Prosecutors allege that Trump authorized a $130,000 payment to Daniels before the 2016 election to inhibit her from going on the record about an affair and that the payment was illegally classified as a legal expense. The Federal Election Commission has previously found that the payment did not qualify as a campaign expense, something that Bragg has sought to prove since bringing charges last year.

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