Make the Trump transcripts public
It was a busy day in the Manhattan courts yesterday as lawyers for criminal Defendant Donald Trump (he’s also a former president and the soon-to-be Republican presidential nominee) filed two sets papers with the appellate division on his Stormy Daniels hush money/election inference trial. But there was an even more significant filing yesterday that will inform the American people about the fairness of the whole trial by having the transcripts made public.
Trump wants his trial, due to start next Monday, moved elsewhere from Manhattan, which should be denied, as it’s just a way to stall the case. He’s also bringing an action against Acting Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan for Merchan’s gag order barring Trump from defaming relatives of the judge and others (although Trump can still carry on about Merchan). That too should be refused
Merchan also received a request from a non-party, Nick Akerman, to make public, on a daily basis, the court stenographers’ transcripts when the proceedings begin in six days. On this request, the answer must be yes.
First Department Associate Justice Lizbeth González rejected a delay on the weak and coming-too-late change of venue motion. The gag order will be addressed likely today. To non-New Yorkers and to most New Yorkers confused about the weird structure of the state courts, we understand. We’ve been studying this nutso system for decades and still have to remind ourselves of the difference between judicial departments, divisions and districts.
Everyone knows about these twin Trump submissions because the appellate court has electronic filing. Unfortunately, New York’s criminal trial courts do not and the electronic info is limited to the case number, IND-71543-23/001; the incident date of Feb. 14, 2017 (when bagman Michael Cohen sought his first reimbursement for paying off Daniels the prior fall); the arrest date of April 4, 2023, when Trump was charged and arraigned and the next appearance of April 15, 2024.
Even so, the Stormy Daniels felony indictment of Trump brought by District Attorney Alvin Bragg does have a case file and yesterday morning added to it was a letter from Akerman, a former Watergate and Manhattan federal prosecutor and currently a lawyer in private practice. He has written op-eds for our pages and others and is a frequent commentator on TV news about the various Trump trials.
As we urged passionately in several earlier editorials, including citing a Washington Post op-ed by Akerman, the transcripts from the first criminal trial of a former president are critically important public documents. The transcripts are the formal record of everything that is said in the courtroom by Merchan, Bragg’s assistant DAs, Trump’s defense counsel and every witness giving testimony including Daniels and Cohen and perhaps even Trump himself.
We wish there were video and audio in the courtroom, but current New York State law bars recording when testimony is being given. That law should change, but it won’t happen by next Monday.
So the best way for Americans (be they Trump supporters or Trump detractors or if there is anyone who is neutral on Trump) to understand everything that is happening in the case is by reading the full transcripts. Merchan, Bragg, Trump and the press will have access to the transcripts. The public must as well.
Justice Merchan, make it so.