A hearing on Monday in United States District Court for the District of Columbia Judge Tanya Chutkan's courtroom could have a wide-ranging impact on Donald Trump's other trials depending on whether a limited gag order is broadened at the request of special counsel Jack Smith.
According to MSNBC legal analyst Glenn Kirschner, the courts -- so far -- have been granting the former president great leeway in what he has said about the judges overseeing his multitude of criminal cases as well as his attacks on prosecutors and investigators.
Depending on the severity of Chutkan's ruling -- which could ban him from inciting his followers at rallies and on his struggling Truth Social platform -- other judges could feel free to clamp down on the former president's out-of-court shenanigans.
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As Kirschner writes, "Regarding court-imposed limitations on a defendant’s speech, in 1991 the Supreme Court made it clear that courts can restrict extrajudicial statements that pose a “substantial likelihood of materially prejudicing” a judicial proceeding without running afoul of the First Amendment’s free speech guarantees."
He then notes that Trump has been given more than enough rope by judges who have balked at making controversial rulings fearing the appearance of bias.
"I cannot recall ever seeing a defendant on pretrial release in a felony case threaten the life of a witness — or, in Trump’s case, suggest that a witness should be executed — and remain on pretrial release," he argues. "The judicial system’s casual treatment of Trump’s unending threats, harassment and intimidation of witnesses is as perplexing as it is alarming."
Accordingly, he says Chutkan has the opportunity this week to end the "kid-gloves" treatment of the former president.
"Will the courts continue to leave him free to endanger witnesses and poison jury pools? Or will they begin treating him the way they tend to treat those without power, wealth and influence and hold him accountable for his extraordinarily dangerous and damaging rhetoric? Our criminal justice system is being tested — now it must rise to the challenge," he argues.
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