Michael Cohen accuses NY prosecutors of coercing testimony in Trump circumstances

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President Donald Trump 's former private lawyer, Michael Cohen, mentioned Friday that prosecutors in each the Manhattan District Lawyer’s Workplace and the New York Lawyer Common’s Workplace "pressured and coerced" him into delivering testimony tailor-made to securing convictions in opposition to Trump.

Cohen, who was a key prosecution witness in two New York circumstances in opposition to Trump, accused New York Lawyer Common Letitia James and Manhattan District Lawyer Alvin Bragg of pursuing proof aimed toward Trump, saying prosecutors have been bored with testimony that didn’t match their narrative.

"I felt pressured and coerced to solely present info and testimony that will fulfill the federal government’s want to construct the circumstances in opposition to and safe a judgment and convictions in opposition to President Trump," Cohen wrote in a submit on Substack.

Fox Information Digital has reached out to the Workplace of the New York State Attorney General and the Manhattan District Lawyer's Workplace for remark.

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Michael Cohen, former private lawyer to President Donald Trump, claims New York prosecutors pressured him to ship testimony aimed toward securing convictions in opposition to Trump. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP by way of Getty Photos)

Cohen, who was Trump's private lawyer for a few years, mentioned he was writing as a federal appeals court considers the president's request to maneuver his hush cash case to federal courtroom for additional evaluate.

The previous Trump fixer testified in a civil case introduced by James' workplace in 2023, the place Trump was found liable for fraudulently inflating his property to acquire favorable mortgage phrases. He additionally took the stand in Bragg's case in 2024, the place Trump was in the end discovered responsible of 34 counts of falsifying enterprise information.

Cohen accused each James and Bragg of utilizing their high-profile circumstances to raise their careers, claiming they sought credit score as officers who "took down Trump."

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Michael Cohen, former private lawyer to President Donald Trump, alleges New York Lawyer Common Letitia James’ workplace pressured him whereas he testified in circumstances in opposition to Trump. (Getty Photos)

"They blurred the road between justice and politics ; and in that blur, the credibility of each suffered," he wrote.

Cohen mentioned that each earlier than and throughout the trials, prosecutors made it clear they have been solely involved in testimony from him that will convict Trump.

"When my testimony was inadequate for a degree the prosecution sought to make, prosecutors frequently asked inappropriate leading questions to elicit solutions that supported their narrative," he mentioned.

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 30: District Lawyer Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., and his authorized staff, maintain a press convention following the Trump verdict on Might 30, 2024 in New York, N.Y. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Submit by way of Getty Photos)

Cohen pleaded responsible in 2018 to a number of crimes, together with tax evasion, marketing campaign finance violations and mendacity to Congress. He described cooperating with authorities whereas incarcerated, saying he sought sentence reduction and felt compelled to supply testimony becoming prosecutors’ narratives with the hope that his sentence can be diminished.

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"You could moderately ask why I'm talking out now. The reply is straightforward. I've witnessed firsthand the harm performed when prosecutors decide their goal first after which search proof to suit a predetermined narrative," Cohen mentioned, whereas noting that he was not writing in protection of Trump.