Trump attended the preliminary hearing in the Manhattan court with his lawyers via videoconference from his Florida mansion.
At the hearing, Judge Juan Merchan briefed Trump on what he could and could not say to the public about the case and the evidence, stating that the prosecution would share the evidence in the case with his lawyers.
Noting that Trump can defend himself against the accusations within the framework of the 2024 Presidential election campaign, Merchan warned that violating the rules set by the court regarding the sharing of evidence in the case to the public may result in punishment.
While Merchan decided that the hearings related to the case would start on 25 March 2024, he requested that the defense motions be made by 29 August and the prosecutors to respond by 10 October.
TRUMP FOUND BY THE GRAND JURY
Trump, a candidate for the 2024 Presidential election in the United States, was indicted on March 18 by a grand jury as a result of the Manhattan District Attorney’s investigation into the illegal “shutdown” payment to adult movie star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 Presidential election.
Trump appeared before a judge in New York on April 4 for committing fraud in the “hush” and related records.
Trump, who denied 34 separate charges brought against him by the Manhattan Attorney General’s Office, described the allegations against him as “political witch hunt” and stated that he saw the accusations as “interference in the elections”.
Trump was recorded as “the first ex-president in American history to stand trial for the charges against him”.