Supreme Court rejects Missouri’s request to block Trump’s New York gag orders, sentencing
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The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a Missouri plea to block New York from imposing a gag order and sentencing former President Donald Trump in his criminal proceedings there until after the 2024 elections. (Katie Barlow)
The Supreme Court on Monday turned down a plea from Missouri to block New York from imposing a gag order and sentencing former President Donald Trump in his criminal proceedings there until after the 2024 elections.
After a six-week trial, Trump was convicted in May in a New York state court on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Prosecutors argued that Trump tried to hide a $130,000 payout to adult film star Stormy in exchange for her silence regarding an alleged sexual encounter between Trump and Daniels in 2006. (Trump denies any sexual relationship with Daniels. Bailey told the justices that he wanted to ensure that voters in Missouri and elsewhere could hear from Trump, and that Trump could “freely travel and campaign” without the gag order. Bailey said he wanted to make sure that Missouri voters and others could hear Trump’s voice and that Trump would be able to “freely campaign and travel” without the gag. Bailey criticized Manhattan District attorney Alvin Bragg, who he claimed brought “transparently low-level charges with the transparent intention of trying to impose a political damage on Trump and to restrain his campaigning in advance of a poll predicted to be very close.” Instead, James contended, “Missouri is clearly and impermissibly seeking to further the individual interests of former President Trump.”
Missouri has also not shown, James continued, that New York is causing it any harm. Missouri’s complaint seeks a block on orders obtained by Bragg in a state court trial. “Allowing Missouri to file this suit for such relief against New York would permit an extraordinary and dangerous end-run around former President Trump’s ongoing state court proceedings and the statutory limitations on this Court’s jurisdiction to review state court decisions.”
Moreover, James added, after the May verdict against Trump, Judge Juan Merchan lifted most of the order limiting Trump’s out-of-court statements, including the bar on attacking witnesses and jurors.
Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito indicated that they would have allowed Missouri to file its complaint against New York.
This article was originally published at Howe on the Court.
