Judge admonishes defense witness for his behavior after prosecution rests in Trump hush money trial NEW YORK (AP) — The judge overseeing Donald Trump's hush money trial briefly closed the courtroom Monday, forcing reporters into the hallway after he admonished a defense witness for his behavior on the witness stand. Michael R. Sisak, Jennifer Peltz, Jake Offenhartz And Alanna Durkin Richer, The Associated Press May 20, 2024 1:49 PM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message Former President Donald Trump sits in Manhattan criminal court in New York, Monday, May 20, 2024.
(Steven Hirsch/New York Post via AP, Pool) NEW YORK (AP) — The judge overseeing Donald Trump's hush money trial briefly closed the courtroom Monday, forcing reporters into the hallway after he admonished a defense witness for his behavior on the witness stand. It happened minutes into the testimony of Robert Costello, a former federal prosecutor who has publicly blasted the prosecution’s star witness, Michael Cohen. Costello aggravated Judge Juan M.
Merchan repeatedly in his testimony by making comments under his breath and continuing to speak after objections were sustained — a signal to witnesses to stop talking. At one point, Costello remarked “jeez" when he was cut off by an objection. He also called the whole exercise “ridiculous.
” After excusing the jury, Merchan told Costello: "If you don’t like my ruling, you don’t say ‘jeez’ ...
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