Former President Donald Trump is trying to get Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s “hush money” case moved to federal court, his lawyer said in court Thursday.
Trump’s defense team is set to file a last ditch motion later Thursday that will seek to transfer the case out state court, his lawyer Todd Blanche revealed at an unrelated Manhattan Supreme Court hearing tied to the case.
A federal judge would then have to rule on whether the case can be moved. The push to have the case heard in federal court could give Trump, 76, an advantage given it would broaden the potential jury pool beyond Manhattan, where voters heavily lean Democrat.
Trump, a Republican, has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records for allegedly concealing reimbursements to his then-lawyer Michael Cohen for a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan — the judge overseeing the case — said Thursday he expects the trial to take place in February or March 2024, which is right in the middle of primary season for the 2024 presidential election.
Trump’s lawyers dropped the news of their motion as the defense team squared off against Manhattan prosecutors over whether the ex-president should be banned from publicly discussing evidence in the criminal case against him.
Prosecutors had sought a protective order last week to restrict Trump from spreading evidence handed over to his legal team on news or social media platforms as the criminal case unfolds.
But Trump’s lawyers hit back, arguing in court papers that the 45th president has a First Amendment right to tell his side of the story — especially because he’s a candidate in the 2024 presidential election.
The public hearing on Thursday was the first since Trump was arraigned last month on the criminal charges over the alleged “catch and kill” scheme to stop the spread of negative information about him during his 2016 presidential campaign.
Trump, who is the first US president in history to face criminal charges, wasn’t in court for the Thursday hearing after the judge previously waived his appearance.