Manhattan Judge in Trump Hush-Money Case Declines Motion for Recusal
Published by The Lawfare Institute
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On Aug. 11, New York State Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan declined to recuse himself from former President Donald Trump’s criminal case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.
On May 31, Trump’s lawyers filed a notice of motion seeking Merchan’s recusal, putting forth three arguments in support of the motion: the “political and financial interest” of Merchan’s daughter, who works with Democratic candidates; Merchan’s role in a prior case encouraging Allen Weisselberg, Trump’s former chief financial officer, to cooperate against the former president; and a $15 donation Merchan made to then candidate Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign.
Merchan rejected all three arguments put forth in the motion, on the grounds that the “Defendant presents no arguments that fairly raise any actual or perceived conflict of interest or preconceived bias.”
Read the decision here or below:
