A courtroom sketch capturing former President Donald Trump during his recent appearance in a New York City courtroom has gained widespread attention online. Trump was present for a legal proceeding regarding 34 charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, accusing him of falsifying business records related to hush money payments made to Stormy Daniels, a former adult film star.
The charges focus on a $130,000 payment to Daniels, arranged by Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, purportedly to secure her silence about an alleged affair during the 2016 campaign.
The viral sketch portrays Trump’s visibly elated reaction, a moment rarely seen without his guarded demeanor, prompting a flood of jokes and memes on social media. In a separate legal development earlier in the day, Trump received a favorable ruling regarding his bond requirement.
Hours before New York Attorney General Letitia James vowed to begin seizing assets of the Trump empire to satisfy the original $454 million judgment, a panel of five appellate judges intervened, reducing the amount to $175 million.
This adjustment follows Trump’s indication that he would need to liquidate various properties in a “fire sale” to meet the cash payment requirement. Without this reduction, Trump faced the genuine prospect of his personal bank account being frozen and his properties being seized and placed under the control of the state of New York.
