The judge in Donald Trump’s hush-money criminal case on Monday declared his daughter off-limits to the former president’s rancor, expanding a gag order days after Trump assailed and made false claims about her on social media.

Judge Juan M. Merchan said his original gag order — barring Trump from making public statements about jurors, witnesses and others connected to the case — did not include Merchan’s family members, but his subsequent attacks warranted including them.

“This pattern of attacking family members of presiding jurists and attorneys assigned to his cases serves no legitimate purpose,” Merchan wrote. “It merely injects fear in those assigned or called to participate in the proceedings that not only they, but their family members as well, are ‘fair game,’ for Defendant’s vitriol.”

Merchan’s daughter, Loren Merchan, is a Democratic political consultant. Prosecutors had urged Merchan to clarify or expand his gag order after Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that Loren Merchan “makes money by working to ‘Get Trump,’” and wrongly accused her of posting a social media photo showing him behind bars.

  • @dugmeup
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    1066 months ago

    Maybe hold him in contempt or recommend criminal charges?

    • FuglyDuck
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      496 months ago

      maybe lock him?

      and maybe forget where the key was? “oops, sorry. we forgot the key. Well slip you bits of food while we try and find it… but… guess you’re going on a diet, huh?”

    • @[email protected]
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      -196 months ago

      What hellhole do you live in where it’s legal to punish someone for something they did that was legal at the time but later a law was passed banning it?

      • @Agrivar
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        136 months ago

        Can you point out the strawman you’re attacking here? I’m having a hard time figuring out what you’re mad about.

  • @[email protected]
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    636 months ago

    And let that be a LESSON to Trump! If he continues his speech and Gosh Darn gets the Judges daughter killed he can BET he’ll get ANOTHER Stern talking to!

    • @Potatos_are_not_friends
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      356 months ago

      Oh you don’t want the Judge to warn you five times! Because after the fifth time… Oh boy, you are gonna GET A SIXTH WARNING, which is unheard of!

    • @[email protected]
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      296 months ago

      That’s not going to happen, he’s going to get a million opportunities us lowly plebs would never get and face no reason consequences.

      • @[email protected]
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        76 months ago

        Set your expectations low enough and you will never feel the bitter sting of disappointment. You will, on rare occasions, be delighted. This isn’t one of those.

  • @Cruxifux
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    526 months ago

    You would assume that slandering a judges daughter while he was presiding over your case would land you in jail quickly.

    I’m sure if I, a poor, did it, it sure would.

  • leadore
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    456 months ago

    Our useless justice system: “And if you do it again, I’ll issue another gag order! And then if you do it yet again, I’ll issue yet another gag order!” etc. etc.

  • @Coach
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    376 months ago

    He can expand it in a knot, He can expand it in a bow, He can throw it over his shoulder, Like a continental soldier, but Don Poorleone still won’t go…

    …unless and until you issue an actual fucking order and not some spineless, pussy bullshit. Do your fucking job, judge, (respectfully) and throw him in jail – at least half of this country has your back.

    • @[email protected]
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      56 months ago

      at least half of this country has your back.

      If not more, 2/3 of the voting public voted in 2020. Less than 1/3 voted for that McBurger inflated orange pumpkin skin sack. Who in a cult wouldn’t vote for their cult leader? That means less than 1/3 of the country (which is even smaller a population yet when you factor in those not old enough to vote, gerrymandered districts, states with difficult voting laws, and prisoners in states that don’t allow them to vote) has been led astray. Orange bloated walking corpse’s constituent numbers are small like his hands, and thankfully, as people realize that he’s all wind and no substance, continuing to shrink. (Much like his bank account.)

  • @EdibleFriend
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    356 months ago

    lol like you will actually do something. bitch.

    -Trump.

    • @Cruxifux
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      226 months ago

      lol seriously. He has shown in a very stark way that the rich are above the law in the US. You can literally try to overthrow the government and then threaten and slander judges and their families and still not go to prison if you’re rich.

  • gregorum
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    356 months ago

    Do you know what it would would be great? If the judge actually enforced it

  • @3volver
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    246 months ago

    Judicial system is weak against the rich, by design of course.

  • @44razorsedge
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    176 months ago

    Bullies gonna bully. There was a lot of chirping at a recent hockey game. A visiting forward who liked to run his mouth and had a tough guy rep was checked, hard, along the boards in front of our team. He was supposed to be a tough guy but he winced. Who knows why, but he showed weakness. Fast as lighting, the Coach said (loud enough for the bench but not the refs) “Why don’t you go cry home to Mommy.” For the rest of the game the guy stayed away and was nothing of a factor in the game .

    The point is when Trump was facing the half billion dollar fine (and supposedly the tough guy) he went ape-shit wincing, weaseling and whinging about it and NO-ONE called him on it. He’s out of control and no-one has the ability to stop his antics.

    So I guess, you get what you pay for; or vote for. And that’s not leadership on the part of the court, it’s appeasement.

  • @SeabassDan
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    126 months ago

    At this point a part of me feels like something will eventually happen to the people he so openly threatens, and then maybe they’ll actually understand they need to get tough on him.

  • @[email protected]
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    116 months ago

    If only they could issue a stern warning, too! I’m sure he’ll stop once he realizes he made a legal faux pas!