Before Donald Trump was criminally charged last year in Manhattan, there was speculation over whether his conduct could trigger felony charges of falsifying business records. To qualify as a felony, such charges require an intent to defraud that includes an intent to commit another crime or to aid or conceal the commission of another crime.
Since Trump’s indictment on those felony charges, the question hovering over the case has been what other law or laws Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg would cite at trial to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.
We got the latest indication of the state’s legal theory in court Tuesday — specifically, that prosecutors are focused on New York Election Law. Section 17-152 of that law, called “Conspiracy to promote or prevent election,” says:
Any two or more persons who conspire to promote or prevent the election of any person to a public office by unlawful means and which conspiracy is acted upon by one or more of the parties thereto, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
The topic arose during the testimony of David Pecker, the state’s first witness, who was called on Monday and who’s still on the stand heading into Thursday. (Court is off Wednesday.) The state asked Pecker about his contacts with Trump ally Steve Bannon on behalf of Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, which Pecker has testified he was aiding with the “catch and kill” scheme. The defense objected to the prosecution’s Bannon-related inquiries, but the prosecution said they’re relevant to that underlying state election law. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
So while it’s early in the trial, we may be hearing a lot more about an alleged election-related conspiracy and how Trump allegedly falsified business records with intent to violate — or to cover up a violation of — that law. Subscribe to the Deadline: Legal Newsletter for weekly updates on the top legal stories, including news from the Supreme Court, the Donald Trump cases and more.
Jordan Rubin is the Deadline: Legal Blog writer. He was a prosecutor for the New York County District Attorney’s Office in Manhattan and is the author of “Bizarro," a book about the secret war on synthetic drugs. Before he joined MS NOW, he was a legal reporter for Bloomberg Law.
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