Adult film actress Stormy Daniels took the stand to testify about her alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump in his hush money trial. Stormy Daniels finished hours of combative cross-examination by Donald Trump’s lawyer Thursday in the former president’s New York hush money trial, while lawyers said former Playboy model Karen McDougal would not testify.
Trump attorney Susan Necheles raised minor inconsistencies in how Daniels has told the story of her alleged sexual encounter with Trump over the years. Necheles has also pressed Daniels on the ways she has profited from her story.
Daniels’ story of that 2006 evening formed the basis for a $130,000 hush money payment she got from Trump lawyer Michael Cohen less than two weeks before the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors allege the payment violated federal campaign finance laws and that Trump falsified records to cover it up.
After Daniels’ defiant testimony wrapped, prosecutors called less controversial witnesses, including Madeleine Westerhout, who was Trump’s White House special assistant before she was fired in 2018 for dishing on the Trump children with reporters. Judge Juan Merchan also rejected the former president’s request for a mistrial.
The trial is generally off on Wednesdays. Judge Juan Merchan designated those days to preside over special court programs for criminal defendants who have mental health issues or are veterans, according to the Associated Press.
