Adult film star Stormy Daniels recounted to a Manhattan jury on Tuesday the details of her encounter with Donald Trump in a penthouse suite in 2006. She described Trump’s assurances not to worry about his wife and likening her to his daughter before they engaged in sexual activity.
Reported by journalists present in the courtroom, Daniels’ testimony provided a vivid narrative of her intimate encounter with the former president. Donald Trump, who faces charges in New York related to concealing hush-money payments to Daniels, has denied the encounter. This trial marks the first instance of a former president facing criminal charges.
Daniels took the stand during the trial’s fourth week, with prosecutors aiming to demonstrate Trump’s efforts to cover up a $130,000 payment to silence her during his 2016 presidential campaign. The charges against Donald Trump include allegations of disguising payments, later reimbursed to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, as “legal expenses.”
The trial commenced with testimony from Sally Franklin, an executive and editor at Penguin Random House, the publisher of some of Trump’s books. Prosecutors presented excerpts from Trump’s books to the jury, highlighting his claims of meticulous financial management.
Earlier witnesses, including former and current finance employees of the Trump Organization, provided testimony regarding payments to Cohen. This testimony, accompanied by financial documentation, aimed to establish Trump’s involvement in the transactions.
The New York trial marks the first of four criminal indictments against Trump to proceed to trial. Meanwhile, a federal judge in Florida postponed indefinitely the trial date for Trump’s classified documents case.
During her lengthy testimony, Daniels detailed her interactions with Trump, including their initial meeting at a golf tournament in 2006 and subsequent encounters. She spoke of feeling pressured by Trump and recounted instances where she felt uncomfortable.
Despite objections from Trump’s defense team and occasional interruptions from the judge, Daniels continued to provide her account. She described her decision to stop communicating with Trump in 2007 and her subsequent experiences, including threats and attempts to sell her story.
Trump’s defense team attempted to discredit Daniels’ testimony, questioning her motives and the consistency of her narrative. Despite their efforts, the judge denied a motion for mistrial.
As the trial continues, Trump maintains his innocence, expressing frustration on his social media platform and facing fines for violating a gag order regarding witness commentary.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64920037
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