Below is my column in the New York Post on the statement by Acting Justice Juan Merchan in the sentencing of President-elect Donald Trump. Merchan’s effort to justify the handing of the case sounded like the second defense argument made in the hearing. It likely changed few minds in the court of public opinion.
Here is the column:
This week, the sentencing of President-Elect Donald Trump saw one of the most impassioned defense arguments given at such a hearing in years . . . from the judge himself. Acting Justice Juan Merchan admitted that the case was “unique and remarkable” but insisted that “once the courtroom doors were closed, the trial itself was no more special, unique, and extraordinary than the other 32 cases in this courthouse.”
If so, that is a chilling indictment of the entire New York court system. Merchan allowed a dead misdemeanor to be resuscitated by allowing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to effectively prosecute declined federal offenses. He allowed a jury to convict Trump without any agreement, let alone unanimity, on what actually occurred in the case. Merchan ruled that the jury did not have to agree on why Trump committed an alleged offense in describing settlement costs as legal costs. Neither the defendant nor the public will ever know what the jury ultimately found in its verdict.
I once described this case as a legal Frankenstein: “It is the ultimate gravedigger charge, where Bragg unearthed a case from 2016 and, through a series of novel steps, is seeking to bring it back to life…Bragg is combining parts from both state and federal codes.”
Even liberal legal experts have denounced the case and Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) recently called it total “b—s–t.”
Now, Merchan seemed to assure this Frankenstein case that he was just like any other creature of the court. It did not matter that he was stitched together from dead cases and zapped into life through lawfare.
Merchan knows that there is a fair chance this monstrosity will finally die on appeal, and he was making the case for his own conduct. The verdict, however, is likely to last far longer than the Trump verdict. It is a judgment against not just Merchan but the New York legal system, which allowed itself to be weaponized against political opponents.
In the Mary Shelley novel, Frankenstein says “I am thy creature: I ought to be thy Adam, but I am rather the fallen angel.”
Trump can now appeal the case as a whole. Prior appeals in the New York court system were unsuccessful, and hopes are low that the system will redeem itself. However, Trump can eventually escape the vortex of the New York court system in search of jurists willing to see beyond the rage and bring reason to this case.
Notably, prosecutor Joshua Steinglass cited Chief Justice John Roberts in his argument before Merchan, noting that Roberts recently chastised those who attack the courts. (Roberts just the night before joined liberal justices and Justice Amy Coney Barrett in refusing to stay the sentencing). Steinglass portrayed Trump as an existential threat to the rule of law.
Roberts, however, is everything that Merchan is not. You can disagree with him, but he has repeatedly ruled against his own preferred outcomes in cases, including rulings against President Trump and his campaign and Administration. For his part, Trump declined to criticize the court and declared that “This is a long way from finished and I respect the court’s opinion.”
Indeed it is. Merchan’s monster will now go on the road and work its way back to the Supreme Court. Outside of New York this freak attraction will likely be viewed as less thrilling than chilling.
The election had the feel of the townspeople coming to the castle in the movie. In this case, however, the townspeople were right about what they saw in the making of a creature that threatened their very existence. Lawfare is that monster. It threatens us all, even those who hate Trump and his supporters. Once released, it spreads panic among the public which can no longer rely on the guarantees of blind and fair justice. That includes businesses who view this case and the equally absurd civil case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James as creating a dangerous and even lawless environment. Many are saying “but for the grace of God go I” in a system that allows for selective prosecution.
In the sentencing proceeding, Merchan was downplaying his hand in creating this Frankenstein. However, the case is the fallen angel of the legal system. While heralded in court by Bragg’s office as the triumph of legal process, it is in fact the rawest and most grotesque form of lawfare. Many will be blamed as the creators of this monster but few will escape that blame, including Merchan himself.
Jonathan Turley is the Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington University. He is the author of “The Indispensable Right: Free Speech in an Age of Rage” (Simon & Schuster, June 18, 2024).
1. Several years ago, I proved that the substance of the procedures of due process are measurable by social equity.
2. Constitutional due process can now be put on software, minimizing the abuses of discretion by judges and lawyers.
3. In the US (as opposed to France, for example), judicial review is not an explicit or implied power of the federal or state constitutions. (Marbury v Madison 1803 assumes what it tries to prove, and that is not an implied power).
4. Therefore, judicial review replaces constitutional law with case law, unless the legal question is a tautology as to whether the legislative act is constitutional or not.
5. Trump’s case was always an illegal tribunal.
5a. Alleged actions determine geographic jurisdiction.
5b. Alleged motive(s) can only determine domain within a geographic jurisdiction (public as per the 9th Amendment, the state, or federal jurisdiction), and this partition is per the 10th Amendment.
5c. If an alleged motive could determine geographic jurisdiction, then double jeopardy could result from different states claiming jurisdiction based on frivolous alleged motives.
6. To claim a felony intent for the NY state statute used in the case, NYC DA Alvin Bragg and asst DA Joshua Steinglass needed the outcome to be a felony.
6a. The only outcome that would fit their objective was violating federal election laws, but that implies federal jurisdiction, because no state can claim jurisdiction over federal issues (10th Amendment and double jeopardy).
6a. The possible state offenses that the state statute could be linked to were only misdemeanors, and the statute of limitations had expired. If an action was only misdemeanor but the intent was alleged a felony, that would be cruel and unusual punishment and is typical of despotic regimes such as Nazi Germany and Vichy France.
6b. If a judge (and prosecutor) act in the absence of personal jurisdiction, SCOTUS allows they can face civil suit under Stump v Sparkman 1978.
6c. Heck v Humphrey 1994 requires the “conviction” to be impaired prior to allowing the civil rights suit to go to trial.
6d. Unconditional discharge does not impair the “conviction” so Trump can’t sue Juan Merchan or Joshua Steinglass until the conviction is impaired in appeal.
7. Normally, an illegal tribunal is an automatic jurisdictional defect, so that Heck v Humphrey 1994 should not apply.
7a. However, over a decade ago, a man sued a state judge and the prosecutors (and the public defenders) because of an illegal tribunal, all under Stump v Sparkman 1978.
7b. This time the state had no geographic jurisdiction, as the man (legally, it turns out) accessed two email accounts that he was the co-owner of (along with his ex-wife). The man was looking for evidence against a judge in the state that held the illegal tribunal.
7c. However, motive does not determine geographic jurisdiction, and only a federal court in the state where the man resided could have venue.
7d. The judge that presided over the illegal tribunal had authorized faked charges that could have occurred in the state (similar to Merchan telling the jury to pick a motive), but had to drop the faked charges (no evidence) before the “jury trial.”
7e. It was the faked charges that allowed the judge to bypass Article IV, Section II, Clause 2 of the US Constitution.
7f. Once in the state, the “jury” heard only about unlawful access, implying that although the man was legally allowed to access the email accounts, his motive “exceeding authorization.”
7g. Only the judge couldn’t tell the jury the motive was to get evidence of a corrupt judge colluding with the man’s ex-wife to extort money from the man.
7h. They faked a motive, the man wouldn’t clarify their obvious lie, the judge and prosecutors and public defenders didn’t tell the jury that the man didn’t reside in their state.
7i. After the man’s impeccable record was ruined by being “convicted” of 30+ felonies (none true), SCOTUS would not allow an automatic impairment of the illegal tribunal fake conviction because the man’s civil rights suit had already been served on the judge, prosecutors and public defenders.
7j. That case is why Trump’s illegal tribunal case lingers.
7k. SCOTUS Chief Justice John Roberts is afraid of applying the rule of law to Trump’s case and having it vacated– only a federal district court in NY would have venue if the alleged outcome was influencing a federal election–because the man vowed to have Roberts indicted for obstruction of justice.
Defunding the police, FBI, etc. are objectives of limited success.
Defund the Bar, particularly the offices of prosecutors, and the public can expect justice.
It is easy, and always has been inexpensive, to prosecute the real violators of law that are serious threats to an individual or members the public.
What is expensive, and a frivolous use of taxes, is allowing prosecutors to act almost without checks and balances.
Prosecutors and judges have standing if and only if they have “subject matter jurisdiction” and “personal jurisdiction.”
Currently, prosecutors and judges allow vexatious suits if there is subject matter or personal jurisdiction.
Then private attorneys generate billable hours and substantial legal fees proving there was no subject matter or no personal jurisdiction.
That is why the US and Israel have, by far, the most licenced attorneys per capita in the world.
The lesson in this case is illustrated in the comments here. TDS victims defend the horrific lawfare, twisting and mentally manipulating the reality of it to suit their narrative. The other side sees the reality as it is, feeling victimized and vulnerable by the application of power to achieve a political outcome. The question of the day is where will the prostitution of the legal system end and will the Law and Justice survive. The nation’s future hinges on the answer.
It seems you don’t understand that there is a civil war going – dems trying to destroy the Constitution, force chaos on Americans.
The dems i.e., marxist, communist, socialist etc. have taken over impotant instituions, inckusing federal, state, local governments.
To neutralize that, Americans need fight them tooth-and-nail, ballots boxes primarily, and LAWFARE. They will not stop until they are DEAD.
The course is still covered in mist and it may never fully reveal its final destination….. that is also unfortunate outcome.
Dear ‘Clarke Penley..’ well said, However…the ‘Lawfare’ needs to end right Here, right Now….there is never an excuse EVER for commandos raiding a former President’s home… we do not elect those kinds of Presidents and RAIDING THEIR HOMES & STAGING EVIDENCE as we saw with the Jack Smith / FBI Show for pieces of paper (whilst another chap, now a President in on the conspiracy to destroy his political opponent, had such papers in boxes in his offices and garages, papers illegally taken as a Senator..) The fact & Miracle that President Trump won, even by 1 vote, speaks that this Lawfare, as we saw it, must be ended N O W.
We elected Obama, he gave a listed terrorist and enemy $80Billion dollars in cash and precious metals. He did this in an attempt to procure a nuclear agreement with Iran. He did this at a time while the US was at war with Afghanistan and ISIS terror groups. Iran was directly funding and supporting these factions against us and they were killing US troops at the time. I call that treason, he should be held accountable.
There was a duel purpose by Marxist-socialist here. Of course the publized purpose was to stop Trump from being elected president. But the long term purpose was to destroy the confidence in the American justice system which has been a long time goal of Marxist in order to gain control of the levers of power. This time it didn’t work but who knows about next time. Satan never takes a day off and evil never gives up.
* Mary Shelley authored Frankenstein before organ transplants became mainstream.
I enjoyed Frank’s pic.
* What Merchan and these guys have done to to the public is emotional abuse using the Trump storyline. It’s basically the same as battered wife syndrome and child abuse.
This is the red line of free speech. These are crimes. The left us nothing more nor better than criminal child abusers and batteries. The sooner it’s realized and prosecuted and stopped the better.
Are we clear, now?
Judge Merchan is free to say whatever he wishes about Trump or anyone else.
But his CONDUCT as a judge must follow the constitution and the law.
Lawfare is not about what left wing nuts SAY – it is about what they DO – it is about their abuse of public power to acheive political desires.
And yes that is a crime to be prosecuted.
Trump’s a criminal. Sexually violated E. Jean Carroll. Committed felony fraud. Attempted to steal the 2020 election. Stole military secrets. All of supported by evidence. Trump’s ‘tards need to read the indictments and the evidence.
You’re an abuser.
1. No security video, no witnesses, no police complaint, no rape kit, no charges, no evidence…
2. 2020 was stolen by the communists; the proof is the massive Trump landslide victory in 2024.
3. The President alone wields the executive branch power of classification, declassification, disposition, and archiving of materials. The legislative branch has no legal basis to usurp any aspect, facet or degree of the power of the executive branch. No legislation usurping the power of the executive branch is constitutional. No legislation usurping the power of the executive branch to classify, declassify, dispose of, and archive material is constitutional.
A tiny but loud portion of the left, with the support of the left fringe MSM have repeated your claims over and over.
Yet after 4 years of constant lies – people do not beleive you.
YOU did this to yourselves.
There was no russian collusion.
You did spy on Trump and his campaign.
The hunter Biden laptop is real.
Covid did come from a lab in China.
Masks don’t work
Lockdowns do not work
even the vaccine did not work.
Covid is now endemic as a result of YOUR failures – that is what happens when you go to war against an epidemic and you lose.
I can go on and on listing lie after lie after lie.
Therefore you should not be suprised that people do not beleive your lclaims like
E J. Carrol was raped, or sexually assaulted or even in a Bergdorfs at the same time as Trump
We KNOW your history of LIES.
And we have seen you “evidence”.
Calling payments to a lawyer for an NDA “legal expenses” is not even a lie, much less false or worse still fraud.
We have “read the indictment” – indictments BTW are allegations not evidence.
We have also seen the evidence.
In fact we look at the garbage you call “evidence” and wonder how YOU beleive the idiocy you do ?
Can you identify the time Carrol was in Bergdorfs with Trump ? how about just the day ? The month ? can you even toll us what year it was ?
Is there a single person that saw Trump and Carrol in Bergdorfs at the same time ?
Outside of one photo at a very large party decades ago, can you even find any witness anywhere ever that saw Carrol and Trump together ?
There is not even actual evidence they know each other.
Do you have any evidence for the Carrol allegation that is more credible than the Duke LaCrosse case ?
With respect to the propeties case – do you have any instance ever before where an AG has prosecuted a property valuation case AT ALL,
Much less one where all parties walked away from the arrangement happy ?
Those of you on the left increasingly OPENLY claim the right to control EVERY detail of other peoples lives.
Daniels and Trump may or may not have had a fling. Before the Trial I beleived they had.
But I did not find Daniels credible at the trial. Further if as YOU claim the election was Trump’s motivation – Daniels could have gotten FAR MORE from the Clinton campaign for her story – after all they paid millions for the collusion delusion hoax – how much do you think Clinton would have paid Daniels for a story that YOU beleive would have flipped the election ?
She tried to get money from reporters for her story. Daniels is NOT stupid.
Do you honestly beleive she would not have shopped the story to the Clinton campaign if it was true ?
If her story is true – it is worth the most to Hillary – Not Donald.
But if it is false – spreading it is defamation – and Trump was known to be litigious.
It is not defamation to sell a false story to the person it is about.
The value of a false story is highest to the person it embarrasses.
Of courts it does not matter if the story is true or false. It is still not a crime.
Nor is Cohen paying Daniels for an NDA,
nor is Trump paying Cohen
nor is Trump recording payments to his lawyer for an NDA as legal expenses.
It is not even a lie. It is correct. the payments ARE legal expenses.
It is this kind of nonsense that is why people do not beleive you.
John Say,
Well said and spot on!!! Their lies are all the evidence we need to know they are not trustworthy and should not be believed or even listen too.
In my country we have trials to adjudicate and substantiate the veracity of allegations and purported evidence.
And when the prosecutors and judges and courts fail at that task, that threatens the very foundations of society.
We can tolerate a small amount of error.
No nations can survive long when the prosecutors, judges and juries become politicized.
Should we try Merchan, and Garland, and Bragg and James, and …. in Staten Island or Lubock TX or Bundy teritory in Nevada ?
Because to can play that game. There are MAGA AG’s all over the country who would be happy to engage in the same tactics that we are seeing in NY.
Either YOU stop this nonsese and provide th rest of us assurance that it can not happen to ANYONE again.
Or the rest of the country WILL FIX IT.
He’s a criminal until an appeals court rules that he isn’t. NY will despise overturning his conviction, but they will, and they will do it quickly, because they won’t want the USSC to rule that NY violated Trump’s civil rights. That finding would be devastating for NY. He defamed Carroll until an appeals court rules otherwise, and they will. That case is more likely to reach the USSC than any of the others. NY blatantly violated Trump’s civil rights when the NY Legislature passed the “special extension” to allow a long SOL’d case to move forward. There was NO other reason for this law, except to target Trump. He was never charged with felony fraud, because he never committed fraud. If he had, the records falsification charge would have made more sense. Nor was he charged with attempting to steal the 2020 election. I hope that clears things up for you.
Oh, how cute! Performative political slapstick vaudeville theater! That should get you your next Grindr date. Meanwhile, Trump is just days away from replacing the Oval Office house plant formerly known as President Ten Percent.
The Bolshevik Birthing Boys aren’t nearly as entertaining as Killary and Bolshevik Barack were with their illegal ‘Russia Dossier’.
Out of curiosity, what do you think Trump did to “violate” Carroll in that “unlocked dressing room” they desperately went searching for in Bergdorf’s on a year she couldn’t remember, on a floor she couldn’t remember, during a season she couldn’t remember, or if he actually ejaculated. It was “yucky,” apparently, and Trump maintains he has never met her. I thought she was awarded for Trump ruining her precious reputation. I hope someone doesn’t find your photo in an old yearbook and decide you violated her in the broom closet. No, probably won’t happen because you don’t have the money to make it worthwhile. Oh, and this isn’t the first time Carrol made such accusations, nor wrote about similar fantasies.
TDS much?