Lawyers for Donald Trump asked the judge overseeing his criminal hush money case to terminate the gag order against the former U.S. president, saying it’s no longer justified since the trial is over.
“Now that the trial is concluded, the concerns articulated by the government and the Court do not justify continued restrictions on the First Amendment rights of President Trump – who remains the leading candidate in the 2024 president election – and the American people,” Trump’s lawyers wrote in a letter to Judge Juan Merchan.
In the letter sent Monday and made public Tuesday, Trump’s attorneys said the justification for the gag order was “to protect the integrity of this criminal proceeding and avoid prejudice to the jury.”
The argument to lift the gag order is “even stronger” since President Joe Biden has publicly commented on the verdict, certain witnesses have commented and the presidential debate is scheduled for later this month, the letter states.
This story is breaking and will be updated.
