Judge Won’t Force Prosecutors to Give Advance Notice of Witnesses Because Trump Can’t Be Trusted Not to Post About Them

Judge Juan Merchan ruled that prosecutors will not have to give advance notice of the witness list to Donald Trump’s legal team, because the former president cannot be trusted not to post about them.

Trump has spent the week in a Manhattan courtroom as he faces 34 felony counts for falsifying business records regarding alleged hush money payments to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election — a historic first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president. The jury selection process kicked off on Monday, and Trump has made headlines for reportedly falling asleep three days so far and repeatedly complaining that he does not think he’s getting a fair trial.

The ex-president’s grumbling about the gag orders imposed by Merchan and his continued comments have been an ongoing issue during the proceedings thus far, with the judge admonishing Trump’s attorneys after he was overheard muttering and gesturing during the questioning of one potential juror. Trump’s social media posts have also raised eyebrows as he has continued to post about the case, Merchan’s daughter, and potential jurors, leading to the inevitable speculation of what might actually happen if the judge rules he has violated the gag orders. There is a hearing scheduled for April 23 on this issue, to determine whether or not Trump violated the gag orders and if so, if America will see the spectacle of a former president tossed behind bars for the transgression.

In light of Trump’s seemingly uncontainable loquaciousness, Assistant District Attorney Josh Steinglass told the court Friday morning that he was not going to give the defense team advance notice about what witnesses the prosecution would call to testify, despite that courtesy commonly being extended to opposing counsel, reported CNN anchor Dana Bash.

Bash added that Trump attorney Todd Blanche had proposed he would assure the District Attorney’s Office that Trump would not post about the witnesses, but Merchan replied, “I don’t think you can make that representation.”

“The judge is not only saying no, I’m not going to force them to give you the witnesses, but also I don’t think you have control of your client, so it’s not great for the defense team there,” said CNN chief legal affairs correspondent Paula Reid.

“These are the legal consequences of these political attacks, right?” Reid continued, for the prosecutors to say “if you’re not abiding by the gag order…we’re not gonna extend that courtesy that we normally would to give you these witnesses.”

This development was “very frustrating for the Trump lawyers,” Reid said she was sure, “because they would love to know who was coming down the pipe so that they can adequately prepare.”

But for the DA’s office, their argument against disclosing the witnesses was based on “a fear that was well-founded” and “the judge agreed,” Reid concluded.

Trump’s trial is in the final stages of jury selection, with the main twelve jurors established and the final set of alternates in the process of being questioned and selected on Friday. Merchan has previously said he wants at least six alternate jurors. The trial itself is expected to start sometime next week.

Watch the clip above via CNN.

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