A New York appellate court denied former President Donald Trump’s request to delay the start of his upcoming criminal case involving falsified documents. The trial is set to proceed on April 15, despite Trump’s legal team filing challenges against Judge Juan Merchan, overseeing the case.
These challenges included seeking to lift a gag order, questioning Merchan’s jurisdiction over the case, and requesting a change of venue due to perceived bias in the Manhattan jury pool. The appellate court denied all three challenges, leading to the trial proceeding as scheduled.
Donald Trump (Credits: Salon.com)
However, Trump’s legal team also filed a motion for Merchan to recuse himself from the case, citing bias concerns related to Merchan’s daughter’s relationship with Democratic political clients and alleged personal bias against Trump. A decision on the recusal motion is expected this week.
Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree related to “hush money” payments made to Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election. If the trial proceeds on April 15, it will be the first of four criminal trials pending against Trump to go to trial.
Former President Donald Trump (Credits: CNN)
In addition to settling the appellate challenges, Trump has made an outstanding motion requesting Judge Merchan to recuse himself from overseeing the case.
Trump’s legal team argued that Merchan’s daughter, Loren Merchan, may be biased against Trump due to her relationship with Democratic political clients.
This motion was filed on April 3, and Trump’s team also claimed that Merchan himself might be biased against Trump. This motion is particularly relevant as Trump is currently campaigning for the 2024 US presidential race as the Republican nominee.
