Partial Gag Order Imposed on Donald Trump in 2020 US Election Meddling Case.
In the ongoing legal proceedings surrounding the alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 US election, former President Donald Trump has been issued a partial gag order by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan.
This order prohibits Trump from making derogatory statements about prosecutors, court staff, or potential witnesses leading up to his historic trial scheduled for March 2024 in Washington.
The decision to impose a partial gag order followed a motion by special counsel Jack Smith, a frequent target of Trump’s criticism. Smith argued that the former president’s inflammatory rhetoric posed a significant risk to the integrity of the trial concerning election subversion.
Trump has publicly referred to Judge Chutkan as a “fraud” and a “Trump-hating judge.” He has also described Smith’s office as a “team of thugs” and characterized Washington as a “filthy and crime-ridden” city with a population he claims is “over 95% anti-Trump.”
During a two-hour hearing in federal court, John Lauro, an attorney representing Trump, contested the imposition of a gag order. Lauro argued that such an order would infringe upon Trump’s First Amendment rights to free speech. He contended that the Biden administration was attempting to censor a political candidate amid a campaign to return to the White House in the 2024 presidential election.
Judge Chutkan countered this argument, emphasizing that Trump’s presidential candidacy does not give him the freedom to vilify public servants merely doing their jobs.
She posed the question, “In what world is it permissible for a defendant to attack a prosecutor’s family?”
Moments before the hearing, Trump took to his Truth Social platform to express his opposition to the “TRUMP GAG ORDER” and accused the Biden administration of seeking an unconstitutional restriction on his speech.
In a series of Truth Social comments, Trump criticized Smith as a “Leaking, Crooked and Deranged Prosecutor” and labeled Chutkan as a “highly partisan Obama-appointed Judge.” He claimed that a gag order would infringe upon his First Amendment rights and hinder his ability to campaign and defend himself, framing it as an attempt to interfere in the 2024 Presidential Election.
Furthermore, Judge Chutkan rejected a renewed attempt by Trump’s legal team to delay the trial until after the November 2024 election. The trial’s date has been set for March 4, 2024, and it could potentially overlap with Trump’s campaign efforts to secure the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.
The charges against Trump relate to his alleged efforts to undermine the results of the 2020 US election, which culminated in the violent attack on the US Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021. He is also accused of attempting to disenfranchise American voters through his false claims of winning the November 2020 presidential election.
Culled | Agence France-Presse
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