Also...
And it's 5:30 New York time, so I assume the Grand Jury testimony is over for today.
Cohen, who spent years at Trump’s side, is likely to serve as a key witness if the case moves forward. He made the $130,000 payment to Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election and later pleaded guilty to violating federal campaign finance law in connection with the payment.
The hush payment on its own is legal, but legal experts have suggested that prosecutors could leverage Cohen’s testimony in an attempt to indict Trump on charges of falsifying business records.
Cohen claims the former president later reimbursed him in monthly installments for the hush money and that the payments were erroneously recorded as a legal retainer fee.
Prosecutors would need to show that Trump, with an intent to defraud, was personally involved in unlawfully designating reimbursements a legal expense, but that charge still would only amount to a misdemeanor. To rise to a felony, prosecutors would additionally need to show that the fraud included an intent to commit another crime, likely a campaign finance violation.
Yahoo
No comments:
Post a Comment