Donald Trump’s hush money trial is heading into the home stretch, with prosecutors’ last witness returning to the stand on Monday for more questioning before the former president’s lawyers have a chance to present a case.
The historic trial will begin again in Manhattan with more defense questioning of former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen, whose pivotal testimony last week directly linked him to the alleged hush money scheme. He is the last witness for the prosecution and it is not yet clear whether Trump’s lawyers will call another witness or the Republican presidential candidate himself.
Defense attorneys have already questioned Cohen for hours about his criminal history and past lies to portray him as a serial fabulist who is on a revenge campaign aimed at bringing down Trump.
After more than four weeks of testimony about sex, money, sensational machinations and the details of Trump’s company record-keeping, jurors could begin deliberating as early as this week to decide whether Trump is guilty of 34 felony counts of falsification of business records in first criminal trial. of a former president of the United States.
The charges arise from internal Trump Organization records where payments to Cohen were marked as legal expenses, when prosecutors say they were actually reimbursements for a $130,000 hush payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
Trump has pleaded not guilty. His attorneys say there was nothing criminal about the deal with Daniels or the way Cohen was paid.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office is expected to end its case once Cohen leaves the stand, but prosecutors would have the opportunity to call rebuttal witnesses if Trump’s lawyers present their own witnesses.
The judge has told lawyers to be prepared for closing arguments on Tuesday, although the timing will depend on whether the defense calls any witnesses, which it is not required to do. Defense attorneys said they have not decided whether Trump will testify.
Defense attorneys are generally reluctant to put their clients on the witness stand and expose them to intense questioning by prosecutors, as this often does more harm than good.
Cohen is prosecutors’ most important witness, but he is also vulnerable to attack.
[Con información de The Associated Press]
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