As if we needed any more proof this country has become a banana republic, Obama appointed Trump hating Judge Chutkan has issued a gag order against Trump in an effort to silence him and sway the jury against him.
The federal judge in Washington overseeing the case against former President Donald Trump related to the 2020 election agreed Monday to impose some limitations on what he can say publicly about the case, restricting the former president and his attorneys making statements that target special counsel Jack Smith, his staff, court personnel, and possible witnesses who may testify in the proceedings.
The decision from U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan followed a lengthy hearing in federal court in Washington, D.C., regarding a request from Smith and his team to limit what Trump can say about the case brought against him by the Justice Department.
Prosecutors asked D.C. District Judge Tanya Chutkan last month to impose a “narrowly tailored” order to prevent the former president from making “extrajudicial statements that present a serious and substantial danger of materially prejudicing this case.”
Citing numerous tweets and other public statements dating back to the 2020 presidential election, the special counsel argued that Trump has an “established practice” of targeting those who challenge him.
“The defendant knows that when he publicly attacks individuals and institutions, he inspires others to perpetrate threats and harassment against his targets,” prosecutors said in court documents, adding that Trump had publicly lambasted potential trial witnesses and the special counsel in an alleged attempt “to prejudice the public and the venire in advance of trial.” The “venire” is the jury pool.
Smith’s prosecutors argued a limited gag order should be imposed over all parties involved in the case to prevent the former president from potentially tainting the jury pool ahead of trial, since court rules usually require certain limitations on what jurors know about a case before being seated at trial.