"How is claiming hush money as legal expenses a criminal case? "
paying from CAMPAIGN FUNDS......
......soliciting funds for a political campaign.......and using for another purpose.......is Campaign Finance FRAUD
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stormy_Daniels–Donald_Trump_scandal
now Cohen has already been convicted of Campaign Finance Fraud......for this very payment......so it's just a matter of convincing a jury that Trump ordered the payment
funny thing is......if Trump used his own money.......there would be no crime......(or at least a lesser crime of tax dodging, if he tried to claim it as a tax deduction)
but if Trump operated like that......he would not have pleaded guilty to ripping off his charity