The trial of a former Trump aide, J. Juan Merchan, and his role in the prosecution of his alleged larceny case

New York Supreme Court Judge Juan Merchan oversaw both the Trump Organization tax fraud trial and the criminal case of Steve Bannon, a former adviser to Trump.

With a show of law enforcement and with the former president already fanning the flames on social media, Trump is likely to be a spectacle.

“He was clear in signaling his judicial inclinations, which helped me tremendously in giving Mr. Weisselberg informed legal advice. Judge Merchan was always well-prepared, accessible, and – most importantly in the Weisselberg matter – a man of his word. He treated us all with respect both in court and behind closed doors.

Karen Friedman Agnifilo, a private practice attorney who previously worked as the chief assistant district attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, supervising cases Merchan presided over, echoed that sentiment.

The criminal case against former Trump aide Steve Bannon is one of several that he’s facing for his alleged involvement in a former charity that helped build a wall along the U.S. Mexico border. Bannon has pleaded not guilty.

When he tried a case before him, Trump attorney Timothy Parlatore admitted that it was not easy on him, but he thought the judge would be fair.

I have tried cases in front of him before. He might be tough. I don’t think it’s necessarily going to be something that’s going to change his ability to evaluate the facts and the law in this case,” Parlatore said.

A criminal defense attorney who was previously an assistant district attorney in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said that he watched a colleague try a shooting case and switch to more serious crimes.

“Maybe someone who was a serial shoplifter and then charged with grand larceny and is in mental health treatment court because they had mental health issues, he was able to handle the wide range of cases and do them all fairly,” Tracy added.

He’s fair and his rulings are consistent with the law, but if it’s a close call he’s on the prosecution’s side.

In 2006, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, then a Republican, appointed Merchan to Family Court in the Bronx, and Democratic Gov. David Paterson appointed him to the New York State Court of Claims in 2009, the same year he began serving as an acting New York Supreme Court Judge.

Born in Bogota, Colombia, Merchan emigrated to the United States at the age of 6 and grew up in the New York City neighborhood of Jackson Heights, Queens, according to a New York Times profile of the judge. He was the first family member to attend college. t

When he dropped out of school to go work, he returned several years later to finish school so that he could get his law degree, the Times reported.

A Manhattan Grand Jury Indictment of a Former President for a Film Production Charged with Tax Fraud on an Adult Film Star

Now that a Manhattan grand jury has indicted a former President in relation to a payment made to an adult film star, attention will definitely turn to the possible trial.

Two business entities controlled by Trump were found guilty of 17 counts of tax fraud and falsifying business records and were ordered to pay the maximum penalty of $1.61 million.

Karen Friedman Agnifilo, a lawyer who previously worked in the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office supervising cases Merchan oversaw, told CNN that Trump likely wouldn’t help his case by publicly criticizing the judge.