On the witness stand this week, Keith Davidson, a lawyer who represented women who said they had sex with Donald J. Trump, lifted the curtain on a sordid underworld of tabloid news and celebrity hush money. That testimony ended on a cliffhanger: Would the presidential candidate’s lawyer pay up?
On Thursday, after a midweek pause in Mr. Trump’s trial, Mr. Davidson is expected to resume where he left off, discussing the hush-money payment at the heart of the first criminal case against an American president. The deal involved his client, Stormy Daniels, who wanted to go public with her story of a sexual encounter with Mr. Trump, and a $130,000 payment to buy her silence, provided by Mr. Trump’s fixer, Michael D. Cohen.
Prosecutors have charged Mr. Trump with falsifying business records to cover up repayments to Mr. Cohen, disguising the checks as “legal expenses” by the Trump Organization. If convicted, Mr. Trump faces up to four years in prison. He pleaded not guilty and has denied that he had sex with Ms. Daniels.
Mr. Davidson’s testimony on Tuesday ended with how he had started to doubt that Mr. Cohen would come through with the $130,000. Mr. Davidson portrayed Mr. Cohen as erratic and excitable — likening him to the dog in the animated movie “Up,” constantly distracted by a squirrel offscreen.
Just before the day ended, Mr. Davidson said that Mr. Cohen, trying to convince him that the payment was imminent, forwarded him an email from First Republic Bank vouching for his solvency.
In addition to Ms. Daniels, Mr. Davidson represented Karen McDougal, a Playboy model who also said she had had an affair with Mr. Trump. Ms. McDougal also received a hush payment — $150,000 from the parent company of The National Enquirer. The tabloid’s former publisher testified that the deal was struck to bury negative news about Mr. Trump before the 2016 election.
The ex-publisher, David Pecker, said he refused to also make a deal for Ms. Daniels’s silence. “I am not a bank,” he said on the stand.
Prosecutors on Thursday are expected to wrap up their questioning of Mr. Davidson, and Mr. Trump’s lawyers will have the chance to cross-examine him.
Here’s what else to know about the trial:
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Before testimony resumes on Thursday, the judge in the case, Juan M. Merchan, will hold another hearing on four instances in which prosecutors say Mr. Trump violated a gag order barring him from attacking witnesses and jurors. Justice Merchan on Tuesday found Mr. Trump in contempt of court for violating the order nine times, and fined him $9,000. Here’s his contempt order.
