Trump should be worried about possible indictment in New York: Dershowitz

Donald Trump should be “worried” about a possible indictment by New York prosecutors for his alleged role in paying silent money to porn actress Stormy Daniels, according to a leading legal expert.

The comment was made by Alan Dershowitz, a former lecturer at the prestigious Harvard Law School, who was part of the former president’s defense team during his first impeachment trial in 2020.

Earlier this month, THE New York Times revealed that Trump had been asked to discuss the allegations against him before a Manhattan grand jury, with the newspaper saying such moves “almost always indicate” that an indictment is near. If taken, Trump would be the first former US president to be indicted, complicating his bid to return to the White House after the 2024 presidential election.

Investigators are investigating a $130,000 payment made to Daniels by Trump attorney Michael Cohen on behalf of the former president to keep secret an alleged affair between the adult film star and Trump as he approached. of the 2016 elections.

Prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office are investigating allegations that hush money amounted to an improper campaign contribution, or whether state laws were violated by reimbursing Cohen for the money he had paid to Daniels.

Trump has strongly denied allegations that he broke election law with the payouts, or had an affair with Daniels, insisting “I did NOTHING wrong,” on his Truth website. Social.

Trump, in posts on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, called for protests and predicted he would be arrested Tuesday in connection with the investigation.

Appearing on Fox News on Friday, Dershowitz claimed Trump would likely be indicted in New York because of the city’s leftist politics, while urging Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg not to take that step.

He said: “I don’t think there will be a successful motion to dismiss. That’s New York justice. In New York, of course, you can charge a ham sandwich, but in New York, you can also condemn a ham sandwich because the jury will be all against Trump and the judges will be all against Trump.

“So if I were him, I would be worried today. He will probably end up winning on appeal, but do today’s judges have the guts, if they run for office the way prosecutors run in the election, to do something pro-Trump in a city that massively despises Trump? That’s what’s wrong with this justice system.

“That’s why Bragg shouldn’t ask the question ‘Can I indict?’ He should be asking the question, ‘Should I charge? And the answer to that question is emphatically ‘no’,” he added.

Newsweek contacted Trump for comment via his official website.

Glenn Kirschner, a former federal prosecutor turned legal analyst, also argued that an indictment against Trump was near, describing the invitation to appear before a Manhattan grand jury as the “last step before an indictment.” .

Trump is also under investigation over his role in efforts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia, the events surrounding the January 6, 2021 storming of Congress by his supporters and his management. classified documents.