Acting Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan issues a protective order over discovery materials in Trump criminal case
Former U.S. President Donald Trump appears in the courtroom for an arraignment in his criminal case at Manhattan Criminal Court on April 4. Credit: TNS/Seth Wenig
The Manhattan judge presiding over the criminal case against Donald Trump has ordered the former president to refrain from sharing details of the prosecution’s evidence against him.
Acting Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan issued a protective order over the discovery materials — evidence that prosecutors are legally required to share with Trump’s attorneys as they prepare to defend him.
Prosecutors had requested Trump be barred from publicizing the evidence, citing past instances where prosecutors allege Trump had used his bully pulpit to criticize legal adversaries. Trump’s lawyers had argued the order would strip him of his free speech rights and have the effect of muzzling a presidential candidate.
“Any materials and information provided by the People to the Defense in accordance with their discovery obligations as well as any other documents, materials, or correspondence provided to or exchanged with defense counsel … shall be used solely for the purposes of preparing a defense in this matter,” Merchan wrote in the Monday order.
Acting Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan in 2011. Credit: Craig Ruttle
The order was expected after Merchan held a hearing last week on the prosecution’s motion for the protective order and largely sided with prosecutors. Merchan has said he’ll formally advise Trump of the order and its contents during a virtual proceeding, the date of which has not yet been announced.
The order stated that anyone with access to the evidence provided by prosecutors to the defense “shall not copy, disseminate or disclose” it to any other parties, including posting it on social media. The order also said the names or other identifying information of any district attorney's office personnel, other than prosecutors or law enforcement officers, cannot be disseminated until trial.
And Trump is only permitted to review sensitive materials turned over to his defense attorneys during the discovery process in the presence of his attorneys and is “not permitted to copy, photograph, transcribe or otherwise independently possess the Limited Dissemination Materials,” the order said.
The order also restricts Trump from viewing portions of the forensic images of witnesses’ cellphones — that are not directly related to the allegations — unless his attorneys receive permission from the judge.
Trump pleaded not guilty last month to an indictment charging him with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with what prosecutors allege were hush money payments made to ex-porn star Stormy Daniels to cover up their affair. Trump has denied the affair.
In their motion seeking the protective order and during a hearing on the issue last week, prosecutors pointed to Trump’s prior conduct — statements and posts on social media disparaging his legal adversaries, including Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, as well as Merchan himself — which has resulted in threats of violence from his supporters.
“Donald J. Trump has a long-standing and perhaps singular history of attacking witnesses, investigators, prosecutors, trial jurors, grand jurors, judges, and others involved in legal proceedings against him, putting those individuals and their families at considerable safety risk,” prosecutors said in their motion.
Trump’s attorneys had countered that the prosecution’s proposed protective order would be an “extraordinarily broad muzzle” and would restrict the First Amendment rights of a presidential candidate.
“He has a right and a need to respond, both for his own sake and for the benefit of the voting public,” his lawyers wrote.
Last week, Trump’s attorneys attempted to get the criminal case removed from the purview of the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and into federal court, arguing that the case should be tried in federal court because Trump was president when the alleged crimes took place. That application is still pending, though legal experts have said it’s unlikely to succeed.
Merchan said then he expects to set a trial date of February or March 2024.
Nicole Fuller is Newsday's senior criminal justice reporter. She began working at Newsday in 2012 and previously covered local government.
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