Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has a new weapon in his fight to prosecute former President Donald Trump for business fraud, said former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance on MSNBC Thursday: keep his former top accountant off the witness stand for the defense.
This comes amid reporting that prosecutors in his office are trying to work out a perjury plea deal for former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, a witness in past Trump litigation who has largely remained loyal to the Trump family.
"I think [it's] a very important word of caution that is not inked by any stretch and could absolutely fall apart," said anchor Alex Wagner. "If it does go through, what are the implications for other witnesses in Trump's orbit who are watching the treatment of Allen Weisselberg?"
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"It is exactly why prosecutors go after perjury, with so much gusto" said Vance. "It really does send a message to other witnesses in a case. I've been involved in cases where we prosecuted someone for perjury in a grand jury. And you see the other witnesses who are trying to decide just how much they can get away with, take note, so in this case I think it is really important."
"One thing — it probably serves to keep Allen Weisselberg off of the witness stand as a defense witness for Donald Trump," Vance continued. "He has always defied the normal expectations with someone who completes a guilty plea that they will cooperate for prosecutors as part of that deal. He never fully cooperated in any case."
So ultimately, she added, "Keeping him off the stand and sending out a caution to other witnesses would be important for Alvin Bragg at this point."
Watch the video below or at the link.
Joyce Vance says Alvin Bragg can keep Allen Weisselberg off the defense witness standwww.youtube.com
