Donald Trump Barred From Posting Evidence In Hush Money Case To Social Media

A New York court on Monday barred former US President Donald Trump from posting about the hush money case on social media. According to NBC News, Judge Juan Merchan agreed with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg that Mr Trump can publicly disclose about new evidence from the prosecution before the case goes on trial. Last week, the judge had asked the prosecution and defense to agree a specific trial date for February or March next year. Judge Merchan said once the date is fixed, then all the parties, including Mr Trump, should not schedule other events.

In his fresh order on Monday evening, the judge said that "any materials and information provided by the People to the Defense in accordance with their discovery obligations ... shall be used solely for the purposes of preparing a defense in this matter", according to the outlet.

Mr Merchan further said in his order that anyone with access to the evidence "shall not copy, disseminate or disclose" the material to third parties, including social media platforms, "without prior approval from the court."

Mr Trump has also been restricted from reviewing "forensic images of witness cell phones", although his lawyers can show him "approved portions" of the images after they get permission from the judge.

Mr Trump denied the charges related to reimbursements to his then-lawyer Michael Cohen for the $130,000 payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels.

Prosecutors say the 2016 payments were intended to silence Daniels over sex she says she had with the ex-President years earlier.

Donald Trump is the first former or sitting US President to ever be charged with a crime.

The criminal case is one of several legal challenges facing Mr Trump as the 76-year-old Republican seeks a return to the White House in next year's election.

He is being investigated over his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in the southern state of Georgia, his alleged mishandling of classified documents taken from the White House and his involvement in the storming of the US Capitol by his supporters on January 6, 2021.