Former President Donald Trump’s behavior during his ongoing trial for alleged hush money payments could indicate a “consciousness of guilt,” according to former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirschner. Trump became the first former president in U.S. history to stand trial in a criminal case, following his indictment by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office in March 2023. The indictment consists of 34 counts of allegedly falsifying business records related to hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign. Trump, who has denied Daniels’ claim of an affair in 2006, pleaded not guilty and labeled the charges politically motivated.
On a recent episode of “The Legal Breakdown,” political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen asked Kirschner for his thoughts on Trump’s claim that he could not testify at his own trial due to a gag order. Kirschner dismissed Trump’s claim, pointing out that the gag order does not prevent a defendant from testifying in court. He suggested that Trump’s assertion to the contrary might reflect a “consciousness of guilt.”
“Donald Trump is a stone-cold liar all day, every day,” Kirschner stated, emphasizing that Trump’s claim was factually inaccurate. He further proposed that prosecutors could present Trump’s comment as evidence and ask the judge to instruct the jury that Trump’s claim was misleading, highlighting his conscious guilt.
The gag order, issued by Judge Juan Merchan, restricts Trump from discussing specific people involved in the case, including witnesses and jurors, but does not prevent him from testifying. Despite the restriction, Trump had told reporters earlier that the gag order barred him from testifying, a statement Kirschner refuted, explaining that courts can limit speech that might interfere with the fairness of a trial.
