'Truly Shocking and Gratifying': Stormy Daniels Case Appears to Wind Down, as Trump, Cohen Back Off

[DonViejo]

by Ronn Blitzer | 9:03 am, January 23rd, 2019

Stormy Daniels‘ highly-publicized case against President Donald Trump and his former attorney Michael Cohen appears to be nearing its end, nearly a year after it rocked the political and media worlds.

Daniels’ case centers on a hush agreement she signed to keep quiet about an affair she claims she had with Trump in 2006. She was paid $130,000 for her silence, as per the agreement which was made in the weeks leading up to the 2016 presidential election. Daniels has been trying secure her release from the agreement’s obligations and restrictions, claiming that it is unenforceable, as Trump never signed it.

Cohen and Trump fought against Daniels for the better part of 2018, with Cohen claiming that Trump’s signature wasn’t necessary because the agreement was really between Daniels and Cohen’s company, Essential Consultants, which was the source of the payment.

Now, however, with Cohen headed to federal prison—in part due to the payment to Daniels, which was deemed an illegal campaign finance violation—the case may be drawing to a conclusion, with Daniels achieving exactly what she set out to do.

In court on Tuesday, attorneys for Trump and Cohen argued that the case should be tossed out because there is no longer a reason to keep going. Trump’s attorney, Charles Harder, has been stating that the president has nothing to do with the case because he never signed the agreement, and on top of that he has no intention of ever trying to enforce the agreement. Cohen’s attorney, Brent Blakely, similarly argued that the case is moot at this point, and Judge S. James Otero pointed out that both of Daniels’ opponents have produced covenants not to sue.

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https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/truly-shocking-and-gratifying-stormy-daniels-case-appears-to-wind-down-as-trump-cohen-back-off/