Former President Trump\u2019s hush money judge in New York has delayed the upcoming trial until mid-April after new evidence was turned over to the parties, aiding the former president\u2019s goal of delaying his criminal trials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jury selection was scheduled to begin March 25, which would\u2019ve marked Trump\u2019s first criminal trial, but Judge Juan Merchan agreed to push it back after prosecutors consented to the one-month delay<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The new curveball came after the parties informed the judge the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Southern District of New York has turned over more than 70,000 pages of records in recent days, some of which are relevant to the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Merchan said he would adjourn the trial date for 30 days from his Friday letter and instead hold a hearing on March 25 to discuss the schedule and the new documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe Court will set the new trial date, if necessary, when it rules on Defendant\u2019s motion following the hearing,\u201d Merchan wrote<\/a>. \u201cThis Court\u2019s directive that the parties, including the Defendant, not engage or otherwise enter into any commitment pending completion of this trial remains in effect.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg\u2019s <\/a>(D) office had said it was ready for trial as scheduled, but it indicated it wouldn\u2019t oppose a 30-day delay out of an \u201cabundance of caution.\u201d Trump\u2019s legal team has said the new documents require a delay that extends beyond late April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor now, however, an adjournment is necessary, and thirty days is not sufficient given the volume of recently produced materials and the nature of the ongoing dispute,\u201d Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Susan Necheles wrote in a letter to the judge Thursday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Trump\u2019s lawyers and Bragg\u2019s have sparred over the new documents, however. Bragg\u2019s office said it previously requested the records and pinned the blame on the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office, but Trump\u2019s lawyers accused Bragg of trying to \u201crewrite the record.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Federal prosecutors are making their final production of documents on Friday, court filings show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the hearing, Merchan said he would review the delay in getting the records from federal prosecutors, asking each side to submit a detailed timeline, including their correspondence with the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe correspondence must include but not be limited to letters, subpoenas, e-mails, notes, messages, etc. The requested documents are necessary for this Court to properly assess who, if anyone, is at fault for the late production of the documents, what prejudice, if any, was suffered by either party and what sanction(s) if any, are appropriate,\u201d Merchan wrote. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The delay is just the latest move to benefit Trump as he broadly seeks to delay his numerous criminal trials. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On April 25, the Supreme Court is set to weigh the immunity claims Trump raised in his election interference case. <\/p>\n\n\n\n His trial for his efforts leading up to Jan. 6, 2021, and related proceedings have been put on ice while the high court considers the matter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n