It has been noted that on Monday, the former President Donald Trump received threats with jail time should he continues violating a gag order in his New York hush money trial, and on Tuesday Judge Juan Merchan blasted him again for witness intimidation. This time around it was for muttering curses as adult film star Stormy Daniels testified via USA Today.
However, if warnings and $1,000 fines for each infraction Trump has racked up 10 of those so far and continue to prove too weak a deterrent for the billionaire. The question remains where would Trump be jailed?
Experts state that the world’s highest-profile detainee could be held briefly in a cell near the courtroom or potentially for days in a jail on notorious Rikers Island.
Ronald Kuby, a veteran New York defense lawyer who has visited clients in city jails and also spent time in them for various acts of protest has stated that said Trump is unlikely to enjoy any detention. Holding cells are small, with loud, sliding doors.
However, Rikers Island, with a reputation for violence and unsanitary conditions, would be worse.
“It’s a bad experience” Kuby told USA TODAY. “Trust me. I’ve been there.”
Trump is unlikely to go to Rikers. However, the more probable scenario of a brief stay in a courthouse cell would be unique and unprecedented. Trump is the first former president to face criminal charges and could become the first jailed should he be found in contempt again. It’s worth noting that he is protected by the Secret Service, creating a host of logistical challenges.
“It is terra incognita: unknown land, off the existing maps,” said James Oleson, associate professor of criminology at the University of Auckland’s school of social sciences, who previously served as a staffer on the U.S. Judicial Conference’s committee on criminal law.
