Legal experts say gag order in Trump case is 'untethered' to 'rationale' after court order
John Gotti, Lucky Luciano 'weren’t silenced the way former President Trump was,' expert says
By Brianna Herlihy Fox News
Published June 19, 2024 4:00am EDT
A New York appeals court on Tuesday kept in place a gag order on former President Trump, who asked the court to lift the ban on his speech after the recent guilty verdict in his unprecedented criminal trial.
Now that the trial has concluded and the former president and presumptive GOP nominee in the 2024 presidential election awaits sentencing next month, experts say the gag order, which Judge Juan Merhcan has refused to lift, is "untethered from any compelling rationale."
"You have a local New York judge effectively limiting what the leading presidential candidate can say in the months leading up to an election," Jonathan Turley, practicing defense attorney and law professor, told Fox News Digital.
"The continuation of the gag order seems untethered from any compelling rationale, particularly in light of the election," he said.
Turley noted that appellate courts are generally "highly deferential" to courtroom management-type issues like the imposition and continuation of gag orders, but he said it is "deeply concerning that Judge Merchan would continue a gag order long after the verdict has been reached and the jury dismissed the case."
"Putting aside the questionable value of the continuation of the gag order, in this case, Judge Merchan is ignoring the countervailing cost for the political system," Turley added.
The New York Court of Appeals on Tuesday rejected Trump’s bid to have the gag order against him lifted, citing that "no substantial constitutional question is directly involved."
more
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/legal-experts-say-gag-order-trump-case-untethered-rationale-after-court-order
