Judge Merchan tries to defend himself after Trump sentencing — but he and Bragg are responsible for this monster
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
On Friday, the sentencing of President-elect Donald Trump saw one of the most impassioned defense arguments given at such a hearing in years … from the judge himself.
Acting Justice Juan Merchan admitted that the case was "unique and remarkable" but insisted that "once the courtroom doors were closed, the trial itself was no more special, unique, and extraordinary than the other 32 cases in this courthouse."
Acting Justice Juan Merchan admitted that the case was "unique and remarkable." AP
If so, that is a damning indictment of the entire New York court system. Merchan allowed a dead misdemeanor to be resuscitated by allowing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to effectively prosecute declined federal offenses.
He allowed a jury to convict Trump without any agreement, let alone unanimity, on what actually occurred in the case.
Merchan ruled that the jury did not have to agree on why Trump committed an alleged offense in describing settlement costs as legal costs.
Neither the defendant nor the public will ever know what the jury ultimately found in its verdict.
I once described this case as a legal Frankenstein: "It is the ultimate gravedigger charge, where Bragg unearthed a case from 2016 and, through a series of novel steps, is seeking to bring it back to life … Bragg is combining parts from both state and federal codes."
Even liberal legal experts have denounced the case and Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) recently called it total "bulls-t."
Now, Merchan seemed quick to assure this Frankenstein case was just like any other creature of the court. It did not matter that it was stitched together from dead cases and zapped into life through lawfare.
Merchan knows that there is a fair chance this monstrosity will finally die on appeal, and he was making the case for his own conduct.
The verdict, however, is likely to last far longer than the Trump verdict. It is a judgment against not just Merchan but the New York legal system, which allowed itself to be weaponized against political opponents.
Trump can now appeal the case as a whole. Prior appeals in the New York court system were unsuccessful, and hopes are low that the system will redeem itself.
However, Trump can eventually escape the vortex of the New York court system in search of jurists willing to see beyond the rage and bring reason to this case.
Merchan's monster will now go on the road and work its way back to the Supreme Court. Outside of New York, this freak attraction will likely be viewed as less thrilling than chilling.
Lawfare is that monster. It threatens us all, even those who hate Trump and his supporters. Once released, it spreads panic among the public, which can no longer rely on the guarantees of blind and fair justice.
That includes businesses that view this case and the equally absurd civil case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James as creating a dangerous and even lawless environment. Many are saying "There but for the grace of God go I" in a system that allows for selective prosecution.
Many will be blamed as the creators of this monster but few will escape that blame, including Merchan himself.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro professor of public interest law at George Washington University and the author of "The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage."
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The bad people are going down.
Hopefully, I'll have them building roads.
What bad people, Vic? Are you the new sheriff in town, or is this cos play on ‘’Cool Hand Luke’’….More make believe…LOL
It is a judgment against not just Merchan but the New York legal system, which allowed itself to be weaponized against political opponents.
And that is why this case matters. Merchan and New York did massive damage to our legal system with a politicized prosecution whose legitimacy has been widely rejected.
Yep. This abuse of the legal system by a corrupt judge and DA can't be ignored and forgotten about. Merchan needs to be knocked off the bench, and Bragg disbarred. They also need to investigate the shenanigans of the rigged J6 investigation.
I'll remember you said that when trump does the exact same things.
Yet another column whining about Trump being held accountable for shit he actually did. Must be a day ending in ‘Y.’
No one ever bothers to even try to claim he didn’t do what he did. It’s not even in dispute. Nor is the illegality of his behavior in dispute. They’re just mad that the system did what it is supposed to do by prosecuting him for it. And they protest that it was “only a misdemeanor,” as if that makes it all ok.
He cheated on his wife with a porn star. He lied about it while campaigning and as president. He took steps to cover it up while he was running for president and while he served as president. He did this because he feared the knowledge might cause people to not support him and he would therefore lose the election. (Turns out, they’re moral hypocrites and they voted for him anyway.)
To facilitate said coverup, he bribed his mistress to keep quiet. To make sure his bribery money couldn’t be exposed, he falsified business records so the payments couldn’t be identified on his taxes, again, keeping the scandal from hurting his election chances.
No one tries to argue that any of this didn’t happen. They just argue that we all should ignore it.
No one even bothers to claim what Trump did was illegal- because it wasn't. NDA's happen all of the time and are a legal expense. The FEC which rules on federal campaign violations found Trump innocent. Hillary Clinton and her campaign were fined for not disclosing the expendature.
So why didn't Bragg and New York go after Hillary? Was it because she had the all powerful D behind her name? And that she actually violated New York laws- and was guilty as sin?
No one bothers to claim the statue of limitations hadn't run out on the two misdemeanor charges Bragg resurrected- because they had.
No one bothers to claim that states are allowed to prosecute/enforce federal laws- because they aren't. Mayorkas and Garland have both sue border states over it for defending their borders and enforcing immigration laws. They allowed the #3 lawyer in the DOJ to quit to prosecute Braggs case.
No one bothers to claim Bragg didn't campaign on "getting Trump"- because he did.
This case never should have been allowed to proceed. Merchan cares more about his own rampant TDS than actually be an impartial judge; and enforcing the law equally and fairly.
No one claims that Democrats/leftist believe in the law or Constitution- because they don't; and have proven it repeatedly.
The theory is nonsensical. He supposedly conspired to interfere in an election by mislabeling paperwork that was filed and made public after the election was already over.
Straw man! His arrangement with Stormy Daniels is not the crime. No one said it was.
It should be a moral reason for him not to be elected - especially in a morally conservative party - and he knew that. That’s why he fought so hard to hide the truth from his supporters.
Once again, someone wants to argue something that didn’t even happen. Anything to avoid facing the truth.
It happened, just about everyone knew about it, and yet no one cares. We still don't know what the real crime was
Yes we do. Maybe try Googling “what was Trump convicted of?” if you still don’t know. I have explained it too many times on this site.
The specific crimes were listed here DOZENS of time, over and over, you not know what they were are a YOU problem.
Like Greg said, no one cares.
And at this point, what difference does it make?