“FRANKENSTEIN CASE”
Speaking to reporters on his way into court on Thursday, Trump called it a “Frankenstein case”.
“It’s not a recognisable crime that any of us have seen,” he said.
Merchan has imposed a gag order on Trump prohibiting him from publicly attacking witnesses and the ex-president – who has traded insults with Daniels for years, calling her “horseface” and other crude slurs – has not yet commented directly on her testimony.
Trump said on Thursday that his side had filed an appeal against the gag order in an appellate court.
His lawyer also demanded that Trump be allowed to hit back publicly at Daniels’ claims about their encounter now she was no longer a witness.
“This isn’t just the same story that has been going around for the past several years. It’s much different,” said the lawyer, Todd Blanche.
Judge Merchan denied his request to change the gag order, which Trump has been fined US$10,000 for breaking.
During the cross-examination on Thursday, Daniels accused Necheles of trying to trick her into misspeaking.
“You have a lot of experience in making phony stories about sex appear to be real,” Necheles said, noting that Daniels had directed and starred in over 150 adult films.
“If that story (about Trump) was untrue I would’ve written it to be a lot better,” Daniels retorted. “I didn’t have to write this one.”
In addition to the New York case, Trump has been indicted in Washington and Georgia on charges of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
He has also been charged in Florida with allegedly mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House but that case has been postponed indefinitely.
