Key Prosecution Exhibits in the Donald Trump "Hush Money" Trial
Exhibit 34 shows a check written to Michael Cohen for $35,000 with the distinctive signature of Donald Trump. The check stop indicated that the payment was for retained legal services in December 2017, which it was not. The check was a monthly payment in a scheme to reimburse Cohen for his $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels to buy and kill her story about her 2006 affair with Donald Trump.
Exhibit 34
Exhibits 35 and 36 are the two most important exhibits in the trial. Exhibit 35 is the bank statement that shows Cohen's payment of $130,000 (plus $35 as a wire transfer fee) and also contains, on the lower right hand side, Allen Weisselberg's handwritten notes. The notes show how the calculation was made to pay Michael Cohen. $50,000 is added to the $130,000 Cohen paid the lawyer for Stormy Daniels to kill her story about her affair with Trump. That $50,000 was for a company called RedFinch which, according to Cohen, was paid to get a poll that was favorable to Donald Trump. So all $180,000 were campaign expenses and should have been reported as such. In the lower left corner of the page, the $180,000 is doubled to $360,000 to cover the taxes (plus a bit) that Cohen will have to pay because he is now ostenbibly receiving compensation for legal services instead of just a reimbursement, which would not have been taxed. Finally, a $50,000 bonus for Cohen is thrown in to make the final calculation for the payment to be $410,000. The handwritten note on scratch payment below, written by Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney, indicates that payments to Cohen began on January 27, 2017 and were to be withdrawn monthly from DJT's (Trump's) personal account.
Exhibit 35
Exhibit 36
Exhibit 37B includes an invoice sent from Michael Cohen to Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney for payment for legal services in March 2017 (although no significant service was rendered) and MC is really asking for another installment payment to reimburse him for his $130,000 check to Stormy Daniels. McConney in response sends an email requesting that the payment to Cohen be made.
Exhibit 37B
Exhibit 45 is a record of a series of payments made by DJT to Michael Cohen, ostenslibly for retained legal services.
Exhibit 45
Exhibit 156 is the agreement (first page shown) entered into between Playboy model Karen McDougal and American Media, Inc., the parent company of the National Enquirer. In the agreement, the National Enquirer obtains the rights to McDougal's story (including her story of a 10-month long affair with Donald Trump) in return for $150,000. The $150,000 payment by AMI owner David Pecker was made with the intent of killing the potentially embarrassing story in the middle of the 2016 election campaign.
Exhibit 156
