Fogbow

katiephang
1h
Re. the jury instruction for “unlawful means”: Judge Merchan rules that if the jurors find that Trump made or caused to be made false business records in order to conceal a conspiracy to promote Trump‘s election through unlawful means, the jurors can have different ideas about what those unlawful means are.
katiephang
1h
COLANGELO: All that the prosecution has to prove is Trump‘s intent to conceal another crime, not that the crime actually happened.
katiephang
1h
COLANGELO: The key point here is to advise the jury that there has to be some unlawful means but they don’t have to unanimously agree on the unlawful means.

https://www.threads.net/@katiephang/post/C7PkksKOd_j

Trump's dick pick released (actual size):

chancery wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 5:15 pm https://x.com/KatiePhang/status/1793023255701282979

MERCHAN: It was concerning when the terms changed to "presence of counsel." I couldn't believe when i saw it again now calling it "involvement of counsel."

Maybe computer printouts of counsel. Trump absolutely loves them.

Let's just go with "correct spelling of counsel." Or wear the same cologne as counsel. Or rode in an elevator in 1987 with counsel. Or watch Matlock reruns.

sugar magnolia wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 5:21 pm They left out "existence of counsel."

Slim Cognito wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 5:34 pm Moseyed by of counsel.

Dr. Ken wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 1:32 pm
former comedian Joe Piscopo was also there today

When you've got Johnny Dangerously's Danny Vermin on your side, how can you be in the wrong?

jemcanada2 wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 4:31 pm We’ll, this seems like an appropriate clip for Piscopo.

Having made my own late joke about this -- damn time zones -- but too lazy to put in a video, I am actually rather sad about Piscopo having drunk the Kool-Aid. I was a fan. This isn't as bad as Steven Seagal being off in Russia as a Putin-cultist, but still...

What it all comes down to, of course, is "Speculation by Counsel"; i.e., "at one point, one of my attorneys threw out some bullshit that we thought may work after the fact to make it legal, so I'm relying on that as my defense."

Ben-Prime wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 6:58 pm

jemcanada2 wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 4:31 pm We’ll, this seems like an appropriate clip for Piscopo.

Having made my own late joke about this -- damn time zones -- but too lazy to put in a video, I am actually rather sad about Piscopo having drunk the Kool-Aid. I was a fan. This isn't as bad as Steven Seagal being off in Russia as a Putin-cultist, but still...

He ruined an otherwise decent episode of ST:TNG. I think I may have heard this before.

pipistrelle wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 7:16 pm

Ben-Prime wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 6:58 pm

jemcanada2 wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 4:31 pm We’ll, this seems like an appropriate clip for Piscopo.

Having made my own late joke about this -- damn time zones -- but too lazy to put in a video, I am actually rather sad about Piscopo having drunk the Kool-Aid. I was a fan. This isn't as bad as Steven Seagal being off in Russia as a Putin-cultist, but still...

He ruined an otherwise decent episode of ST:TNG. I think I may have heard this before.

You know, I had been willing to overlook that for years. I may need to rethink.

Having quickly done my Google Fu, I will at least give Piscopo credit for not being a Johnny (Dangerously) Come-Lately. He campaigned for TFG as far back as '16, and toyed with a gubernatorial race of his own after his experiences doing so. So I'll give him some credit back for being sincere and not JUST a performative goober at this. It doesn't make me like him more, but I won't knock this as being just-for-the-views on his part.

And here I thought Pepsico has had a fine line of products all this time.

Would it be possible to get links to yesterday's and today's examination of prosecution defense witness Costello? The court's copy of the transcript is unsearchable and pretty much unreadable unless you are in fifth grade.

Thanks in advance.

Ben-Prime wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 7:01 pm What it all comes down to, of course, is "Speculation by Counsel"; i.e., "at one point, one of my attorneys threw out some bullshit that we thought may work after the fact to make it legal, so I'm relying on that as my defense."

As some of the IAALs here have stated, while "advice of counsel" can be a valid defense, "presence of counsel" or any of the variations on that term that have emerged, are not.

Plus, using "advice of counsel" as a defense has its drawbacks. First and foremost, the defendant must waive lawyer-client priviledge and must put the lawyer on the stand to, under oath, state that he/she did, in fact, advise the defendant to do what he did. Not being a lawyer myself, I don't know how big an opening that gives the prosecution to ask the lawyer other, more incriminating questions.

sterngard friegen wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 9:13 pm Would it be possible to get links to yesterday's and today's examination of prosecution defense witness Costello?

The New York Times is posting pdf transcripts that are searchable and downloadable, presumably by concatenating and OCR-ing the images posted by the NYS court system.

https://www.nytimes.com/article/trump-h ... ripts.html

As you know, the court system transcripts are posted in the evening of the day after each trial day. I don't know why the NYT hasn't processed yesterday's transcript yet.

Most of the big news organizations appear to have paid for dailies, but they're not posting them for the public.

If you want today's transcript right now, the principal court reporter for New York County Criminal Court is:

Susan Pearce-Bates
P: 646-386-4226
Fax: 212 374-3133
Email: spearce@nycourts.gov

Check your credit card's limit before you order.

NYTimes only published up to May 17. Here is the transcript for yesterday:
https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/ ... -52024.pdf

Where did you find that?

chancery wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 9:47 pm

Where did you find that?

Google-Fu.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/pol ... 783614007/

Thanks.

NP

Flatpoint High wrote: ↑Tue May 21, 2024 9:41 pm NYTimes only published up to May 17. Here is the transcript for yesterday:
https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/ ... -52024.pdf

Thanks for the link.

I was interested in what led up to Costello's contumacy.

Before he was called, after objection by the DA, Justice Merchan severely limited what the defense could ask Costello. The defense was limited to two instances where Cohen had told Costello that Trump did not know the source or fact of the Stormy Daniels payoff. Justice Merchan so ruled based on the "inconsistent statement" doctrine that allows otherwise tangential information into a case to show a witness is lying.

The decision by Justice Merchan occurred without Costello knowing about the limitation. He obviously took the stand believing he could testify fulsomely. When Justice Merchan started to sustain the DA's objections that went beyond the inconsistent statement inquiry, Costello became upset. Normally you get to answer questions about surrounding events. But when a witness gets upset, rightly or wrongly, he should not do what Costello did. That was quite unprofessional.

The defense should have told Costello about the limitations to his testimony. How? Blanche's team should have asked Justice Merchan for permission to do so before he took the stand. Then Costello wouldn't have looked like such an ass when what would be, in other trials, perfectly reasonable questions about context and circumstances which here were repeatedly objected to with objections properly sustained by the trial court. Quite frankly, Costello should not have been called at all. But clearly someone wanted to get him on the stand, and it was almost certainly the client. Trump is truly an idiot and Blanche was a fool for agreeing to represent him.

So Costello's combustible personality along with his ignorance of the limitations on his testimony (which was Blanche's fault) led to his contumacious outbursts.

It took a village to make Costello a great prosecution witness: Blanche, for agreeing to call him and for not seeking to explain to Costello the limitations on him testimony. (The latter is utter malpractice.) Costello, for being an asshole and for showing contempt for the court. (It didn't hurt that he wrote revealing emails to his partners demonstrating that he was in Trump's pocket while trying to represent and manipulate Cohen.) Trump, for insisting he be called. And finally, to the DA's office and Susan Hoffinger for a brilliant cross-examination.

Thanks for the great analysis, Sterngard.

That is better than any analysis I have heard or read.

Maybe I messed up, but I can't find Ms. Hoffinger's remainder of the cross-examination, which she estimated would take 30 to 45 minutes to complete. Or the redirect. I reckon that's yesterday's testimony, and we'll be able to read it mañana, yesno?

I can't believe I'm reading transcripts. I think I'll go mow the yard.