A forensic analyst who took the witness stand in Donald Trump’s hush money case said that Michael Cohen had tens of thousands of contacts saved on his phone. Douglas Daul testified that there were an eye-popping 39,745 contacts stored in Cohen’s phone. “That is unusual. I have not seen that many contacts on a phone,” Daus told jurors, adding that he typically sees hundreds “maybe thousands” when analyzing cell phones.
Here’s the latest:
Quick Read
- Forensic Analyst Testimony: A forensic analyst from the Manhattan district attorney’s office, Douglas Daus, testified in Donald Trump’s hush money trial, focusing on the extensive number of contacts and photographs found on Michael Cohen’s phones.
- Davidson’s Testimony Concludes: Keith Davidson concluded his extensive testimony, which lasted about 6 1/2 hours over two days, detailing his role in the negotiations of hush money payments.
- Cross-Examination Details: The defense cross-examined Davidson, challenging his credibility and knowledge of the events and agreements he brokered.
- Prosecution’s Re-Direct: Prosecution returned for a re-direct of Davidson, trying to reinforce his statements and clarify points raised during the cross-examination.
- Content of Cohen’s Phone: The testimony revealed Cohen had an unusually high number of contacts, over 39,000, which is uncommon even among high-profile individuals, according to Daus.
- Gag Order and Contempt Hearings: The session began with another hearing regarding potential violations by Trump of the court’s gag order, with no immediate ruling on the new allegations.
- Audio Evidence: Audio recordings of conversations between Cohen and Davidson were played in court, illustrating their discussions about the settlements and Cohen’s concerns about his standing with Trump.
- Trial Progress: The trial, marking its 10th day, continues to unfold with intense scrutiny over Trump’s involvement in the hush money scheme and the legality of the payments recorded as legal expenses.
The Associated Press has the story:
Forensic analyst testifies about Michael Cohen in Trump’s hush money trial
NEW YORK (AP) —
Lawyer Keith Davidson concluded his testimony in Donald Trump’s hush money trial late Thursday afternoon after spending about 6 1/2 hours on the witness stand over two days. Prosecutors then called to the stand a forensic analyst who works for the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
Thursday’s proceedings began with another contempt hearing over whether the former president violated his gag order again.
Judge Juan M. Merchan heard from both prosecutors and one of Trump’s defense attorneys about four more prospective violations, including comments Trump made about the political makeup of the jury and comments he made to reporters in the courthouse hallway. No immediate decision on the potential sanctions was made.
The trial is in its 10th day.
Prosecutors have said that Trump and others conducted a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election by purchasing and burying salacious stories that might hurt his campaign.
Trump is accused of falsifying internal business records to cover up hush money payments — including $130,000 given to porn actor Stormy Daniels by Cohen — recording them instead as legal expenses.
He has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
The case is the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president and the first of four prosecutions of Trump to reach a jury.
COHEN HAD ALMOST 40,000 CONTACTS ON HIS PHONE, ANALYST SAYS
A forensic analyst who took the witness stand in Donald Trump’s hush money case said that Michael Cohen had tens of thousands of contacts saved on his phone.
Douglas Daul testified that there were an eye-popping 39,745 contacts stored in Cohen’s phone.
“That is unusual. I have not seen that many contacts on a phone,” Daus told jurors, adding that he typically sees hundreds “maybe thousands” when analyzing cell phones.
Among the examples shown in court: Multiple pages worth of entries for Trump, ex-National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and the Trump Organization’s former longtime finance chief, Allen Weisselberg.
Daus also looked at photographs stored on Cohen’s cellphones, including one shown in court of the ex-Trump lawyer posing at the lectern in the White House press briefing room in February 2017.
The analyst said he’s never met Cohen.
But asked by prosecutor Christopher Conroy how he knows that’s him, Daus deadpanned: “I watch a lot of news.”
FORENSIC ANALYST CALLED AS NEXT WITNESS
Prosecutors in Donald Trump’s hush money case called Douglas Daus to the witness stand following the conclusion of Keith Davidson’s testimony.
Daus is a forensic analyst from the Manhattan district attorney’s office who performed analyses on two iPhones that former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen turned over to authorities during the investigation.
Davidson was on the witness stand for about 6½ hours over two days.
DAVIDSON TESTIMONY CONCLUDES
Keith Davidson finished testifying Thursday afternoon after a few more questions from Trump lawyer Emil Bove during a portion of his testimony known as re-cross.
The defense lawyer focused again on portions of audio recordings of conversations Davidson had with Cohen in 2018, playing them aloud for the jury. The same clips had previously been played only for Davidson and the parties, but not the jury in Donald Trump’s hush money case.
Bove used the recordings to amplify his contention that, contrary to Davidson’s testimony, Stormy Daniels had attempted to leverage Trump’s election to maximize her payday.
In one of the clips, Davidson could be heard saying that he recalled hearing Daniels screaming at him during the 2016 negotiations and telling him to settle as soon as possible because she feared she’d lose leverage if Trump lost.
AUDIO RECORDING OF COHEN AND DAVIDSON PLAYED IN COURT
During re-direct by the prosecution in Donald Trump’s criminal trial, an audio recording of Michael Cohen and Keith Davidson was played aloud in court.
In the recording, Cohen could be heard telling Davidson about a conversation he’d had — with a person the witness said he believed to be Trump.
“I can’t even tell you how many times he said to me, ‘You know, I hate the fact that we did it.’ And my comment to him was, ‘But every person that you’ve spoken to told you it was the right move,’” Cohen said in the recording.
Davidson testified that he understood the comments were referring to Trump’s regret about the settlement with Daniels.
Elsewhere in the audio, Cohen can be heard fretting about his position within Trump’s orbit, telling Davidson: “Nobody’s thinking about Michael.”
“I mean, would you write a book? Would you break away from the entire, we’ll call it, Trump doctrine?” Cohen asked. “Would you go completely rogue?”
PROSECUTOR RETURNS FOR RE-DIRECT
After a short break Thursday afternoon, Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass launched a new round of questions at lawyer Keith Davidson during a phase of his testimony known as re-direct. That’s common in trials. Defense attorney Emil Bove will have a chance to ask more questions afterward.
During the break, Donald Trump stood behind the defense table and chatted with adviser Boris Epshteyn. Epshteyn stood at the rail separating the gallery from the area where the parties and lawyers sit.
As the two were talking, District Attorney Alvin Bragg entered the courtroom, passing behind Epshteyn and catching a look from Trump, before making his way to a seat on the other side of the gallery.
CROSS-EXAMINATION OF DAVIDSON CONCLUDES
The defense in Donald Trump’s hush money trial concluded its cross-examination of Keith Davidson by focusing on what’s not known about the Stormy Daniels agreement — namely what happened with it once it was sent to Michael Cohen and whether Trump ever signed it.
The document referred to Trump by a pseudonym, David Dennison, and had a spot on the signature page for “DD.” But the version that Davidson had, which was used as evidence at the trial, doesn’t show any signature in that space.
Trump attorney Emil Bove also focused on what he said was the common use of pseudonyms in such deals. Aside from referring to Trump as David Dennison, the document listed Daniels as Peggy Peterson.
“It’s common. You even used it with Hulk Hogan. Correct?” Bove asked Davidson. After a pause and some prodding, Davidson responded: “I believe so.”
Currently:
— Key players: Who’s who at Donald Trump’s hush money criminal trial
— The hush money case is just one of Trump’s legal cases. See the others here
— Read the judge’s full order on Donald Trump’s gag order violations
— Trump calls judge ‘crooked’ after facing a warning of jail time if he violates a trial gag order
