Judge Merchan told lawyers to be prepared to give closing arguments on Tuesday (2024)

Before leaving for the weekend, Judge Juan Merchan told the lawyers to be prepared to give summations, also known as closing arguments, on Tuesday – meaning the jury could have the case as early as this week.

Prosecutors told Merchan they have no other witnesses to call after Michael Cohen is off the stand, and the defense said it plans to call one campaign finance expert, though that is not set in stone.

Donald Trump's attorney Todd Blanche said the defense could still choose to call additional witnesses to challenge testimony, and Trump’s team maintains it has not made a decision on whether the former president will testify in his own defense.

There’s also the possibility, asCNN has reported, that former Cohen attorney Bob Costello could appear. Costello made an impression during a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing Wednesday where he repeatedly attacked Cohen and said “virtually every statement” Cohen made on the stand aboutCostellowas a lie.

The other complicating factor is there are only three days of court next week leading up to the Memorial Day holiday.

Merchan didn’t say what that would mean for next week’s schedule – an early start or going later was one option, he suggested – but it all indicates that the judge believes the jury could end up beginning deliberations this week.

Donald Trump departed Trump Tower notably earlier Monday en route to court where his former lawyer and “fixer” is back on the stand to resume a fourth day of testimony.

But first the court has some evidentiary matters to address — hence the early departure time.

Court will resume at 8:45 a.m. with the evidentiary issues, and the defense is expected to continue its grilling of Cohen at approximately 9:30 a.m., after critical testimony Friday undermined his credibility.

The prosecution will then have a chance to undo some of the testimony with an opportunity for redirect.

There are signs this historic trial of a former president is nearing a close. Prosecutors have said this is their last witness. The Trump defense will then have a chance to present their case, and have floated calling two witnesses though nothing is set in stone. It is yet to be determined whether Trump himself will testify. The judge asked attorneys to prepare for summations potentially Tuesday, but everything is fluid.

Reminder: Court is shorter this week, with no proceedings Friday due to a juror flight ahead of the Memorial day holiday.

Michael Cohen departed his Manhattan residence early Monday, making no comment to the media, on the day he is expected to return to the stand for a fourth day.

Cohen is currently under cross examination in the historic criminal trial of his former employer Donald Trump.

Defense said they expect to finish cross of Cohen before the mid-morning break. The prosecution would then have a chance to re-direct, and then there will be an opportunity for re-cross and so on.

Prosecutors have said Cohen is their last witness. The defense would then be given an opportunity to present their case. Cohen departed just after 7:30 a.m.

Donald Trump's legal team is led by Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, two former federal prosecutors from New York, and Susan Necheles, a veteran criminal defense lawyer with deep experience in New York and with appearing before Judge Juan Merchan.

The defense will continue to cross-examine Michael Cohen, the prosecution's key witness, when court resumes this morning. Blanche conducted the questioning last week.

During cross-examination, defense attorneys typically aim to discredit the testimony of the prosecution's witnesses. Witnesses’ responses are considered evidence, but not the questions posed by an attorney.

Here are the key things to know about Trump's legal team:

The court is starting earlier than usualtoday at 8:45 a.m. ET todeal with outstanding evidentiary issues.

But the jury willstart at 9:30 a.m. ET,as usual.

Donald Trump is expected to depart Trump Tower earlier than usual as a result, according to sources.

The biggest questions asDonald Trump’sfirst criminal trial resumes Monday are whether his attorneys have destroyed the credibility ofstar witness Michael Cohen— and how much of the damage prosecutors can fix.

The presumptive GOP presidential nominee is due back in court amid clear signsthe hush money trial is drawing toward a close— unless he takes the risky decision to testify in his own defense, a step that would lengthen and complicate the proceedings.

Defense lawyers say they expect to complete their bruising cross-examination of Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and enforcer, on Monday morning.

Prosecutors will then use their second chance to question Cohen to try to patch up any doubts the ex-president’s team may have sown in the minds of jurors about his version of events.

New York state prosecutors allege Trump broke the law by falsifying financial records to cover up a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. This, they say, was to deceive voters in 2016 in an early example of election interference. Trump denies having an affair with Daniels and has pleaded not guilty.

Read the full analysis.

Donald Trumpattorney Todd Blanche raised his voice and flailed his arms at Michael Cohen, accusing the prosecution’s star witness of making up a phone conversation with Trump just before he sent $130,000 to Stormy Daniels’ attorney in October 2016.

Blanche confronted Cohen with text messages he sent with Keith Schiller – whom Cohen had said put Trump on the phone – which were unrelated to anything having to do with Trump or Daniels.

It was the most dramatic moment of the cross-examination of the key witness in the hush money case, andthe clearest example yet of the defense’s effort to cast doubt on Cohen’s memory of phone calls and other significant interactions with Trump in 2016.

Court was off on Friday so Trump could attend the high school graduation of his son, Barron. Cross-examination of Cohen will resume Monday and it’s possible summations could begin as soon as Tuesday.

Here are the takeaways from Day 18 of the Trump hush money trial.

The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York denied the former president’s request to make public documents related to a disputeover whether records were withheld before the trial was underway.

Judge Juan Merchan initially delayed the start of the trial so he could hold a discovery hearing to understand whether any documents were improperly withheld or turned over late by the Manhattan district attorney’s office. Trump’s lawyers said prosecutors were late to provide certain records related to the production of documents from federal prosecutor’s investigation into Michael Cohen, a key witness in the case. The judge found there were no violations.

After the hearing in March, Trump’s lawyers asked for various records related to the matter to be made public, including timelines of the communications involving federal and state prosecutors. Prosecutors opposed the request saying it would reveal “work product and sensitive” communications among law enforcement agencies. Other records are correspondence among the parties and the judge.

The judge on Thursday ruled none of the records should be made public.

When his hush money trial first got underway in April, former PresidentDonald Trump privately complained that not enough of his allies were inside or outside the courtroom to defend him, according to multiple GOP sources familiar with his thinking.

But several weeks later, Trump’s supporters are flocking to the Manhattan courtroom in droves.

GOP Sen. Rick Scott of Florida became the first lawmaker to make the trek up north last week, followed several days later by House Speaker Mike Johnson – who’s been under fire from his right flank – and a quartet of Republicans sporting nearly identical navy suits with red ties, which, whether accidental or not, took the coordination to the next level.

Their appearances inspired what sources say has been a mostly organic movement among Republicans. Now, the floodgates have opened, with Trump’s team fielding a deluge of interest from lawmakers and orchestrating campaign stops with Trump supporters within the city before and after trial appearances as the proceedings drag on.

“There’s been a waterfall [of people] who want to come and show support for him, and we expect more,” one Trump adviser told CNN.