Trump’s trial raises celebrity scandals as shadowy witnesses take the stand

NEW YORK – Lindsay Lohan, Hulk Hogan and Tila Tequila were among the who’s who of celebrities named on the sixth day of testimony in former President Trump’s ongoing criminal trial.

The trial took a detour Thursday into a graveyard of celebrity scandals unearthed by the former president’s lawyer as he tried to diminish the credibility of Keith Davidson, a lawyer who represented two women who paid hush money during Trump’s 2016 campaign.

Trump lawyer Emil Bove insinuated that Davidson, who was subpoenaed to testify, tried to extort the former president when he negotiated a deal to keep porn star Stormy Daniels quiet about an alleged affair with Trump ahead of the trial. that year’s election.

Trump is on trial on 34 counts of falsifying company records about how he allegedly reimbursed his ex-fixer for making the payment. The former president has pleaded not guilty and denies having an affair.

Prosecutors called Davidson to the witness stand and questioned him for two days, walking jurors through his negotiations in detail. Under cross-examination, Bove suggested that the lawyer regularly sought out salacious stories. He brought up how Davidson was previously investigated for racketeering in his dealings with celebrities.

Trump’s lawyer has received confirmation from Davidson that he was being investigated by state and federal authorities for racketeering in connection with the 2012 publication of a snippet of wrestler Hulk Hogan’s sex tape in the now-defunct Gawker blog. The lawyer was never charged.

The blog posted a shortened version of the grainy black-and-white video showing the professional wrestler having sex with a friend’s wife. According to CNN, a December 2012 federal sting operation targeting Davidson yielded three DVDs showing the affair.

When asked about it, Davidson initially insinuated that he wasn’t sure if it could be considered a “sting operation,” but eventually confirmed that the FBI was monitoring his negotiations.

Hogan later sued Gawker to disappear, earning $115 million in an invasion of privacy lawsuit against the online site in 2016.

Bove also questioned Davidson during the trial about how Dylan Howard, the editor-in-chief of the National Enquirer, had a byline on a story related to the sex tape.

Davidson was one of Howard’s “key sources,” the tabloid’s former publisher testified last week. The lawyer had informed Howard of Daniels’ allegations of an affair with Trump, which ultimately led to the hush money payment at the center of the case.

“Did you or didn’t you give Howard any information about the tapes,” Bove asked.

“No, I didn’t,” Davidson insisted.

Bove also accused the witness of helping someone named “Ms. Holland” leaks information to TMZ about Lindsey Lohan’s stay in rehab.

The attorney appeared to reference a 2010 TMZ report that described Lohan as “belligerent” and abusing alcohol during the period, referring the information to a chemical dependency technician at the clinic named Dawn Holland.

Davidson testified that he saw “Ms. Holland” leaked the information, but when asked if he helped her get paid for the leak, he said he could not remember.

In relation to a series of other celebrity scandals, including reality TV star Tila Tequila and actor Charlie Sheen, Davidson also failed to recall certain details.

The attorney did admit to helping real estate agent Tila Tequila with the sex tape and said Sheen paid him at one point, but was vague when asked about the details of those incidents.

The interrogation became difficult at times, with Bove expressing frustration with the witness’ sometimes vague answers or when he responded to many questions with “I don’t remember.”

“Is it fair to say that your memory is vague on some of these issues?” Bo asked as the discussion became heated.

Davidson said he has represented hundreds of clients and was asked about years of allegations. When Bo asked for truthful answers, he raised his voice.

“You will get truthful answers, sir!” Davidson replied strongly.

The cross-examination undermined Davidson’s testimony for the state, with the jury seeing that text messages between him and a top National Enquirer editor drew connections between the destruction of the women’s stories and Trump’s 2016 presidential bid.

The lawyer often paused before answering questions during the two days he was on the stand, and seemed unenthusiastic about being subpoenaed to testify.

Trump sometimes turned his body toward Davidson on the stand, and the former president stared at the monitor in front of him as the lawyers pulled out several pieces of evidence, including dozens of text messages that Davidson sent or received during the hush money negotiations.

In one conversation, as Trump moved closer to becoming the nation’s president-elect on election night 2016, Davidson wrote to the Enquirer’s editor-in-chief: “What have we done.”

He testified Thursday that the comment was “gallows humor” as there was a “growing feeling” that Trump would win the presidential race.

“There was an understanding that our efforts might have somehow — notice that — that our activities might have helped Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in some way,” Davidson said.