TRUMP NAMES NEW LAWYERS TO HANDLE TRIAL

Former U.S. president Donald Trump on Sunday named two new lawyers to lead the defence in his Senate impeachment trial after abruptly parting ways with his prior counsel.

lawyers David Schoen and Bruce Castor will head the defence effort in the trial set to begin Feb. 9, Trump’s office said. Schoen had already been helping Trump and advisers prepare for the proceedings, according to the former president’s office.

Butch Bowers and Deborah Barberi, two South Carolina lawyers, are no longer on Trump’s team, a source familiar with the situation told Reuters. The source described their departure as a “mutual decision.”

Trump is due to file a response to the impeachment charges on Tuesday.

Schoen previously represented Trump’s former adviser Roger Stone, who was convicted in November 2019 of lying under oath to lawmakers investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election. Trump pardoned Stone in December 2020.

Castor is a former Pennsylvania district attorney known for his decision not to prosecute entertainer Bill Cosby in 2005 after a woman accused Cosby of sexual assault. In 2017, Castor sued Cosby’s accuser for defamation, claiming she destroyed his political career.