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The judge in the criminal case against former President Donald Trump fined him again for violating a court order barring him from speaking against witnesses or court employees. This is the 10th time that Mr. Trump has been punished for violating the order.
Judge Juan Merchan said the $1,000 fines for each violation he has imposed so far do not appear to be deterring Mr. Trump from violating the order. He said that if it was necessary he would impose a prison sentence, which until now, as he said, he had tried to avoid at all costs.
The judge added that Mr Trump's "continuous and deliberate" violations constituted a "direct attack on the rule of law".
"I don't want to impose any jail time and I've done everything I can to avoid doing that. But I will do it if it is necessary," said Mr. Merchan.
Donald Trump is accused of falsifying business records to conceal a $130,000 payment made to former porn star Stormy Daniels. The latter claims that she had a sexual relationship with Mr. Trump, which the former president has denied. The indictment alleges that the payments to Ms. Daniels were part of a scheme to influence the 2016 presidential election.
During the trial, which entered its 12th day today, a former senior aide to Mr. Trump, Hope Hicks, and David Pecker, former publisher of a well-known tabloid, testified that, according to prosecutors, was part of the scheme to blocked the publication of negative stories about Mr. Trump that could hurt his chances of being elected.
Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denies having sex with Ms. Daniels. Likewise, the former President has often complained that the criminal trial has kept him away from the presidential campaign where he is the expected Republican candidate.
Over the weekend, he held a series of meetings in Florida related to a possible selection of the Republican vice presidential nominee. The New York indictment is widely seen as less weighty than the three indictments Mr Trump faces.
In two cases he is accused of trying to overturn the result of the 2020 elections as well as of unauthorized and intentional possession of secret documents.
Mr. Trump has declared that he is innocent of all three cases. The New York trial is the only case on which a decision is expected before the November 5 presidential election.
It is unclear who will testify Monday. Prosecutors have kept secret the list of witnesses they will call due to concerns that Mr. Trump may try to influence those the prosecution sees as key people in the process./ VOA
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