txags92 said:

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Steinglass is all hung up about it being the law in NY State. Who is responsible for abiding by that law, the client or the attorney? Is it illegal for a client to pay an attorney without a retainer agreement in place? Or is it illegal for an attorney to perform legal services without an agreement in place?

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Steinglass is all hung up about it being the law in NY State. Who is responsible for abiding by that law, the client or the attorney? Is it illegal for a client to pay an attorney without a retainer agreement in place? Or is it illegal for an attorney to perform legal services without an agreement in place?

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Prosecutors have reentered the courtroom following the lunch break. New York County District Attorney Alvin Bragg is back, as well.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is expected to begin his closing argument soon.

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Ellis Wyatt said:

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I don't think it matters.

And if somehow the jury were to acquit, Merchan would object and rule Trump guilty himself.

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Donald Trump chatted with his attorney Todd Blanche before the judge entered the courtroom.
Tiffany Trump, Lara Trump, Eric Trump and Donald Trump, Jr. are back in court.

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AustinAg2K said:

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Question for the lawyers. If Trump is found not guilty, will there be any review of the case by a higher level court to asses if the judges decisions were correct or not, or does that only happen if Trump loses and appeals?

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SwigAg11 said:

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Ellis Wyatt said:

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I don't think it matters.

And if somehow the jury were to acquit, Merchan would object and rule Trump guilty himself.

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I know this judge is crazy, but can a judge even do that?

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AustinAg2K said:

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Question for the lawyers. If Trump is found not guilty, will there be any review of the case by a higher level court to asses if the judges decisions were correct or not, or does that only happen if Trump loses and appeals?

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Im Gipper said:

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So at the end of closing, Blanche said the jurors should "think twice" about convicting Trump.

Prosecution went nuts and so did Merchan.

He will give a curative instruction.

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Judge Juan Merchan is back on the bench and court is in session.

Merchan begins by asking for prosecutors. He asked for their proposed curative instruction about discussing sending Trump to prison.

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Im Gipper said:

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So at the end of closing, Blanche said the jurors should "think twice" about convicting Trump.

Prosecution went nuts and so did Merchan.

He will give a curative instruction.

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Judge Juan Merchan and attorneys are discussing the issue of a curative instruction as to defense attorney Todd Blanche's remarks about sending Trump to prison.
During his closing arguments, Blanche talked about Michael Cohen's credibility and told the jury: "Then he came in here, he raised his right hand and he lied to each of you repeatedly. You cannot send someone to prison you cannot convict somebody based upon the words of Michael Cohen."
Prosecutors say they've drafted a curative instruction on the prison comment and the retainer agreement issue
Trump and his attorneys Emil Bove and Blanche reviewed the paper before Blanche speaks.
Blanche says they have no objection to the language of the curative instruction regarding the prison comment but says they don't believe he misstated the law as to retainer agreements in his closing argument.
Merchan says he will give the curative instruction on Blanche's prison comment as written. He says he will not give the instruction on the retainer agreement, saying while he understands prosecutors' frustration he thinks an instruction from the bench to the jury "would call more attention to it than it's worth."

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Attorney Joshua Steinglass is delivering the prosecution's closing argument in the hush money trial against Donald Trump.
The mic was not working at first, but was fixed.
He is expected to tie together text messages, phone logs, other witnesses' testimony, and the 34 allegedly falsified documents to corroborate Michael Cohen's testimony as the prosecution tries to appeal to the 12-person jury before they begin to deliberate.
Steinglass is the senior trial counsel in the Manhattan District Attorney's office and has worked on some of the office's more high-profile cases, including the Trump Organization's tax fraud conviction in 2022.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass says "it's just not reality" that Stormy Daniels was extorting Donald Trump.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is continuing his closing argument.

"The conspiracy to unlawfully influence the 2016 election you don't need Michael Cohen to prove that one bit," he says.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is continuing his closing argument.

"The conspiracy to unlawfully influence the 2016 election you don't need Michael Cohen to prove that one bit," he says.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass calls David Pecker's testimony "utterly damning."

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"Mr. Pecker has absolutely no reason to lie here, he still considers Mr. Trump a friend and mentor and yet his testimony was utterly devastating," Steinglass says.

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Steinglass says that Pecker's testimony "eliminates the whole notion that this was politics as usual" and that you don't need Michael Cohen's testimony to prove there was a conspiracy.

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Former President Donald Trump's eldest sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump and his daughter-in-law and Republican National Committee co-chair Lara Trump railed against key figures in the hush money trial outside the Manhattan courtroom where closing arguments are taking place.
Trump's eldest sons attacked and tried to undermine the credibility of Michael Cohen, the prosecution's star witness, and New York District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the case against Trump.
Donald Trump Jr. took aim at Robert De Niro, who spoke to reporters outside of the courthouse earlier on Tuesday on behalf of the Biden campaign.

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"We understand that this is a political persecution. That was evidenced today by the Biden campaign themselves holding a rally here," Donald Trump Jr. said.

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Eric Trump said, "I want to say sorry to the jury that's in there. This has been the greatest colossal waste of time."
Lara Trump asked supporters to donate and plugged Trump's campaign website. Tiffany Trump also attended the trial on Tuesday but did not come to speak to reporters.
They did not take questions from reporters.

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"To be sure" some witnesses want to see Donald Trump convicted, says prosecutor Joshua Steinglass. "They've been attacked by the defendant on social media."
The prosecutor acknowledges that Stormy Daniels is one of them.

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"They've shamed her. They've tried to suggest her story has changed over the years. It has not, at least not in any way that's significant.
"To be sure, there were parts of her testimony that were cringeworthy," Steinglass says.

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Before prosecution began its closing arguments, the attorneys on both sides and the judge discussed Trump attorney's Todd Blanche's comments about Michael Cohen's credibility during his closing argument.
CNN's Paula Reid explained why the comment was a "third rail."
What Blanche said about Cohen: "Then he came in here, he raised his right hand and he lied to each of you repeatedly. You cannot send someone to prison you cannot convict somebody based upon the words of Michael Cohen."
Why it's controversial: "The jury is not going to sentence the defendant if he is convicted. And the judge suggested that this was part of an effort to elicit sympathy, potentially, for the defendant. So that's why this is such an issue. They should not be bringing this up because this is not the jury's job right now to decide whether or not someone goes to prison," Reid explained.

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"Their job is to look at the facts and the law and decide whether this is an acquittal or if this is a conviction. That's their task, and it has nothing to do with sentencing. And that's why prosecutors objected and the judge agreed," she added.

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aggiehawg said:

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass says "it's just not reality" that Stormy Daniels was extorting Donald Trump.

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That didn't take long.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is continuing his closing argument.

"The conspiracy to unlawfully influence the 2016 election you don't need Michael Cohen to prove that one bit," he says.

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How stupid.

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aggiehawg said:

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Judge Juan Merchan instructs the jury about the defense's closing arguments.

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"In the defense summation, Mr. (Todd) Blanche asked in substance that you not send the defendant to prison. That comment was improper and you must disregard it.
In your deliberations, you may not discuss, consider or even speculate as to matters related to sentence or punishment

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"In his opening, Mr. Colangelo told you that this case, at its core, is about a conspiracy and a cover up," prosecutor Joshua Steinglass says, recalling prosecutor Matthew Colangelo's opening statement.

In his closing argument, Steinglass says the conspiracy was "to corrupt the 2016 election" and the a cover up was "an effort hide the conspiracy to falsify business records to disguise."

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass focuses on Trump attorney Todd Blanche's accusation that evidence may have been manipulated, saying they only have records for two of Michael Cohen's 11 phones.
He says prosecutors don't have all the phone data for the parties involved so the jury should note that the absence of a particular phone record doesn't prove that a call did not happen.

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"Some of the conversation in this case took place in person so there wouldn't be a phone call or record. The fact that there isn't a record of a particular phone call does not mean a particular conversation did not take place," he said.

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That's pretty weak sauce.

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Troy91 said:

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that the absence of a particular phone record doesn't prove that a call did not happen.

Wow, burden of proof is on whom?

If you want to make that argument, bury it in the smoke and mirrors. You don't lead with that.

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That seems like a bad argument to make. In effect they are saying it's ok to not believe his testimony, which makes them look bad because he was their star witness.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is arguing that that some of the details in Stormy Daniels' story ring true, like what Trump's hotel suite looked like and the contents of his toiletry bag.
He says those are the "kind of details you would expect someone to remember" and notes that if Daniels didn't testify about them, it would have given the defense more ammunition to try to discredit her.
"In the simplest terms, Stormy Daniels is the motive," Steinglass says.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is moving onto Michael Cohen and notes the fact that he has an interest in this case.
"Michael Cohen is understandably angry, that to date, he's the one one who's paid the price for his role in this conspiracy," Steinglass says.
"Anyone in Cohen's shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable," Steinglass says.
Cohen did Trump's bidding for years, "and when it went bad the defendant cut him loose, dropped him like a hot potato and tweeted out to he world that Mr. Cohen was as scumbag," Steinglass says.
Steinglass is not referring to Trump by name, just as the defendant.

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aggiehawg said:

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is arguing that that some of the details in Stormy Daniels' story ring true, like what Trump's hotel suite looked like and the contents of his toiletry bag.
He says those are the "kind of details you would expect someone to remember" and notes that if Daniels didn't testify about them, it would have given the defense more ammunition to try to discredit her.
"In the simplest terms, Stormy Daniels is the motive," Steinglass says.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is moving onto Michael Cohen and notes the fact that he has an interest in this case.
"Michael Cohen is understandably angry, that to date, he's the one one who's paid the price for his role in this conspiracy," Steinglass says.
"Anyone in Cohen's shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable," Steinglass says.
Cohen did Trump's bidding for years, "and when it went bad the defendant cut him loose, dropped him like a hot potato and tweeted out to he world that Mr. Cohen was as scumbag," Steinglass says.
Steinglass is not referring to Trump by name, just as the defendant.

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Donald Trump wouldn't pay $130,000 twice that after it was grossed up for taxes just because he took a photo with someone on a golf course, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass tells the jury.
Remember: The jury was shown a photo on May 7 of Trump wearing a golf shirt alongside Stormy Daniels.
She testified that she met Trump in 2006 at a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe. "It was a very brief encounter," she said.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said Donald Trump's attorney Todd Blanche sounded like "he admitted" that at least as early as 2017, former President Donald Trump knew about the Stormy Daniels' payments.

"Remember, 2017 is when the checks were still rolling in every month. Of course the defendant knew much earlier than 2017," he said.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is now addressing Michael Cohen's admission of stealing from Trump by overcharging the Trump Organization for the tech services.
The prosecutor says Cohen didn't tell Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg it was only $20,000 he should've been reimbursed rather than the $50,000 he claimed.
Steinglass adds: "And he should have, and that's stealing, we agree."
"It's true he was never charged with that. He's also the one who brought it to everyone's attention," Steinglass says.

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Joshua Steinglass calls out Trump's attorney Todd Blanche on what he said was an inconsistency in the defense argument about Michael Cohen.
"You can call him a thief or say it wasn't a reimbursement but not both," he says.
"I don't know if anybody caught this," he tells the jury.

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"Blanche said (Cohen) stole $60,000 because it was grossed up. So that means the defendant is trying to have it both ways, right. They're denying the $420,000 was a reimbursement at all. Claiming payment for legal services rendered in 2016. But if that's true, then there was no theft. He's getting paid for legal services in 2017. They can call him a thief and claim this wasn't really reimbursement, but not both."

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Tramp96 said:

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aggiehawg said:

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is arguing that that some of the details in Stormy Daniels' story ring true, like what Trump's hotel suite looked like and the contents of his toiletry bag.
He says those are the "kind of details you would expect someone to remember" and notes that if Daniels didn't testify about them, it would have given the defense more ammunition to try to discredit her.
"In the simplest terms, Stormy Daniels is the motive," Steinglass says.

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Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass is moving onto Michael Cohen and notes the fact that he has an interest in this case.
"Michael Cohen is understandably angry, that to date, he's the one one who's paid the price for his role in this conspiracy," Steinglass says.
"Anyone in Cohen's shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable," Steinglass says.
Cohen did Trump's bidding for years, "and when it went bad the defendant cut him loose, dropped him like a hot potato and tweeted out to he world that Mr. Cohen was as scumbag," Steinglass says.
Steinglass is not referring to Trump by name, just as the defendant.

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But Cohen is a scumbag. That's been proven multiple times in this trial.

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