Trump Criminal Trials

Famed attorney blasts Juan Merchan's threats to strike testimony of key witness, Bob Costello

Legal expert Alan Dershowitz called out Judge Juan Merchan for his "outrageous" rulings in the New York criminal trial against former President Trump, arguing the case should be broadcast on television so that Americans can see the "spectacle."

"The Brian Kilmeade Show,"

Tuesday, Dershowitz called Merchan a "tyrant" after he threatened to strike the testimony of Bob Costello, the defense's main witness, an act that Dershowitz argued would have violated the Sixth Amendment.

ALAN DERSHOWITZ:

I've been in courthouses in every part of the world and in China, in Russia, in Ukraine, in Israel. I've been all over. I've never seen a spectacle like this. And that's why it should have been on television, so the American public could see

how outrageous this judge is.

And CNN just does his bidding. CNN lies, lies through their teeth about what happened in court yesterday between Judge Merchan and Bob Costello. Bob Costello testifies, Merchan rules against him at every point, keeps out his testimony, makes outrageous rulings that any first-year student taking evidence would know was wrong.

And Bob Costello does what I did: He rolled his eyes. And I rolled my eyes, I said, I couldn't believe the judge was making these rulings. And the judge, thinking he's a tyrant, clears the courtroom, throws out everybody from the media. For some reason, they allowed me to stay, and I watched as the judge berated him. And the judge said something I have never seen in a courtroom in my history, 60 years. He threatened to strike the testimony of the main witness for the defendant because of punishment of the witness for staring at the judge. Can you imagine theviolation of the Sixth Amendment?The Sixth Amendment allows any defendant to confront witnesses and to present evidence in his defense. Can you imagine if this judge had actually struck the testimony of Bob Costello? It would result in an automatic mistrial, new trial, and a verdict against the prosecution. The judge was bluffing. He ought to be disciplined for making that threat because the threat was an idle threat. He obviously didn't act on it. …

You can't throw out a witness's testimony and punish the defendant that way. It's just an outrageous threat. And we didn't see it because television is not allowed in the courtroom. … They just won't allow the American public towatch this trial, and I don't blame them. If I were the judge, I would never want this trial to be on television because he's behaved so outrageously.