Judge Gives Trump Mafia Boss Treatment And Says So

[babylonsister]

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/3/23/2159841/-Judge-Gives-Trump-Mafia-Boss-Treatment-And-Says-So

Judge Gives Trump Mafia Boss Treatment And Says So
KeithDB
Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.)
Thursday March 23, 2023 · 2:29 PM EDT
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The Federal judge handling E. Jean Carroll’s rape/defamation lawsuits against Donald Trump just gave Trump a treatment generally reserved for mafia bosses and terrorists. Judge Lewis Kaplan ordered that the jurors in the case will be anonymous. The judge did so, not on the request of either party, but sua sponte (the court’s own motion). The judge acknowledged that such treatment was unusual and “most often” reserved for “terrorism and organized crime cases.”

However, the judge cited Trump’s long history of attempting to intimidate courts, witnesses, and even individual jurors as justifying this unusual step.

“it bears mention that Mr. Trump repeatedly has attacked courts, judges, various law enforcement officials and other public officials, and even individual jurors in other matters.”

A very lengthy footnote, filling most of a page provides examples of that. Footnote 7 on page 4 is definitely worth a read.

Another example cited by the court is Trump’s reaction in the last week to reports that Alvin Bragg’s grand jury in Manhattan is about to indict Trump. The judge noted his court is next door to Bragg’s.

“Mr. Trump’s quite recent reaction to what he perceived as an imminent threat of indictment by a grand jury sitting virtually next door to this Court was to encourage ‘protest’ and to urge people to ‘take our country back.’ That reaction reportedly has been perceived by some as incitement to violence.”

The court continues.

“In these circumstances, this Court is obliged to consider the likely effect on jurors of the matters just described, similar events in the relatively recent past, and the likely future course of events, including the inevitable extensive media coverage. And it cannot properly ignore the significant risk that jurors selected to serve in this case will be affected by concern that they could be targeted for unwanted media attention, outside pressure, and retaliation and harassment from persons unhappy with any verdict that might be returned.”

The motion was not objected to by either party, though news organizations did citing the customary approach of open courts. In rejecting the medias concerns the judge made clear that Trump history of “violent rhetoric” outweighed even the Constitutional concerns raised by the media:

“Mr. Trump himself has made critical statements on social media regarding the grand jury foreperson in Atlanta, Georgia, and the jury foreperson in the Roger Stone criminal case. And this properly may be viewed in the context of Mr. Trump’s many statements regarding individual judges, the judiciary in general, and other public officials, as well as what reports have characterized as ‘violent rhetoric’ by Mr. Trump including before his presidency. In these circumstances, the common law and constitutional arguments made by the News and the AP are unpersuasive.”

This is what a judge is compelled to for a civil trial of a former President of the United States. The trial is scheduled for April 25th.

UPDATE

Today Trump used Truth Social to threaten Alvin Bragg with a baseball bat.

[Alice Kramden]

1. Preemptive measures

That's a smart judge

[EmmaLee E]

11. And Brave

[jpak]

2. All rise cuz here come the judge

Here come the judge

Here come the judge

Here come the judge

[MiHale]

3. Believing that the indictment "leak"...

was a test of the waters to see the reaction TFG and his base would have. All this stuff trump has going on is too big to fuck up everything and anything must be anticipated. It would probably be an unprecedented move but most of all this is unprecedented.

[2naSalit]

8. +1

[Alexander Of Assyria]

4. Inevitable. Kid gloves treatment for the rich former President, but now...gloves off!

About time the similar fact evidence of many years, evidence of hate speech and indictment to violence, be gathered up and weaponized. Legally ofc.

Hate speech should be a crime, other nations understand the why and the how.

America needs to get with the times, and the times demand more shields for democracy.

[Escurumbele]

5. Doesn't trump's beahviour amount to witness tampering? He should be charged for that as well

There is so much evidence of his threats, which he does through media, so why is he not being accused of witness tampering? or witness intimidation? which, I guess, amounts to the same thing?

[spanone]

6. ...K&R...

[ColinC]

7. Aren't all these threats crimes?

[2naSalit]

10. I used to think so...

Now, I wonder if they have been torn out of the law books as violations of something or another, I forget what that was now.

[housecat]

22. Only for Democrats and non-white people

[Aviation Pro]

9. The irony is dripping

Considering that Motherfucker is using an image that conjures up Deniro's baseball bat scene in The Untouchables.

And Bob hates that bloated motherfucker.

[Fla Dem]

12. Congrats to the Judge. A very precautionary action well indicated by Trump's history of retribution.

I'm sure it allowed the jurors a sigh of relief.

[Captain Zero]

27. I hope jurors are instructed to report tampering

And have it explained to them what the law is concerning tampering with a jury or witness.

Because I've said all along that he WILL do it.

[DENVERPOPS]

28. Exactly

anyone who is a judge, a juror, or testifying against Trump would be the same as going against a big Mafia Boss......

[tinrobot]

13. Makes wonder what judges in the possible criminal cases will do.

I could easily see judges putting a gag order on him and threatening jail time if he breaks it.

Once someone is arrested for a felony, their freedom is usually at the discretion of the court.

[secondwind]

14. Wow...... K&R!!!

[Wednesdays]

15. THIS needs to be all courts' SOP from this point forward for TFG

[Upthevibe]

16. babylonsister.....

Thank you for posting.... Jesus effing Christ.....

Thank God for this judge..........

[Justice matters.]

17. Good, but not good enough...

Hair furhair should be locked up in a mental institution with no phone to threaten anyone with.

Witness tampering, threatening jurors and prosecutors should be another crime to add up to the pile.

National Security is a risk since January 2017 and here we are 6 years and 2 months later from no effective action to reign in that National Security threat.

[ancianita]

18. Thanks to you & Daily Kos! This is a landmark judicial due process statement in and of itself, imo.

[2live is 2fly]

19. Still hoping the GA. election worker & her mother who endured so much harassment/threats

because of the Orange dimwit, files some kind of mental anquish lawsuit.

[ZonkerHarris]

20. Justice moves too slowly so now I'm just rooting for a massive coronary to hit Trump

[stage left]

25. I've been rooting for that

since 2016. I don't care how he goes, just so he goes and I never have to hear his name again.

[Deuxcents]

30. I'm hoping Karma is planning something special

[republianmushroom]

21. like it

[Hekate]

23. Kick and Rec. About time for this move by a judge.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

24. Is the trial going to be televised?

Because that worked so well during the O.J. trial.

[Faux pas]

26. Kickin'

[calimary]

29. And kickin' some more!

[Martin68]

31. Yes!

[dalton99a]

32. Kick