Judge Merchan on Tuesday eased a gag order on President Trump regarding his Manhattan criminal case. This decision now permits the leading Republican presidential candidate to criticize witnesses who testified against him, as well as others involved in the trial that concluded last month with his conviction.
Judge Juan M. Merchan, who oversaw Trump's trial in April and May, ruled that Trump can now voice his complaints about the prosecution's witnesses, including his former lawyer, Michael D. Cohen. The judge further determined that after Trump's sentencing on July 11, he will be allowed to publicly criticize others currently protected by the gag order, including prosecutors and their families.
Trump remains bound by a separate order that prevents him from revealing the identities of jurors or attacking them by name. However, Justice Merchan's ruling now permits Trump to broadly criticize the jury that convicted him.
Before the trial began, Justice Merchan imposed the gag order as Trump criticized Cohen, the prosecutors, and the predominantly Democratic Manhattan jury pool. During the trial, Trump violated the gag order ten times, which resulted in $10,000 in fines.
