Former President Donald Trump recently appealed a judge’s partial gag order that prohibits him from attacking prosecutors, court staff and witnesses in his election conspiracy case via Deadline.
In her written order, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan wrote that Trump’s comments about figures like Special Counsel Jack Smith and Mark Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a potential witness, make them targets of threats and harassment.
“The bottom line is that equal justice under law requires the equal treatment of criminal defendants; Defendant’s presidential candidacy cannot excuse statements that would otherwise intolerably jeopardize these proceedings,” she wrote.
The order prohibits the parties in the case “from making any public statements, or directing others to make any public statements, that target (1) the Special Counsel prosecuting this case or his staff; (2) defense counsel or their staff; (3) any of this court’s staff or other supporting personnel; or (4) any reasonably foreseeable witness or the substance of their testimony.”
It has been noted that Trump will not be barred from commenting on the government generally, including the Biden administration and the Justice Department, nor will he be prohibited from claiming his innocence or that his prosecution is politically motivated, Chutkan wrote.
Chutkan wrote that “in order to safeguard the integrity of these proceedings, it is necessary to impose certain restrictions on public statements by interested parties. Undisputed testimony cited by the government demonstrates that when [Donald Trump] has publicly attacked individuals, including on matters related to this case, those individuals are consequently threatened and harassed.”
She wrote, “Since his indictment, and even after the government filed the instant motion, [Trump] has continued to make similar statements attacking individuals involved in the judicial process, including potential witnesses, prosecutors, and court staff. Defendant has made those statements to national audiences using language communicating not merely that he believes the process to be illegitimate, but also that particular individuals involved in it are liars, or ‘thugs,’ or ‘deserve death.’”
