Trump scores win ahead of Manhattan trial after judge suggests star witness Cohen committed perjury

Former President Donald Trump scored an unexpected victory ahead of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's trial against him when a federal judge denied Michael Cohen's bid to end his supervised release early on the grounds that the former Trump attorney may have committed perjury.

Cohen on Wednesday asked the court to lift his supervised release because he testified in New York Democratic Attorney General Letitia James' civil fraud case against Trump, which resulted in a $454 million judgment against the former president. Cohen is expected to be Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's star witness in his criminal case against Trump over the former president's alleged involvement in hush-money payments.

Cohen, who has tried three times before to lift the supervision set to end in November, told the judge that there has been a "substantial change in circumstances" since he testified against Trump in October 2023.

"In short, there was ‘a substantial change in circumstances’ between Cohen’s third failed application and this, his fourth," U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman wrote Wednesday, per CNN. "But that change — his October 2023 testimony, which was either perjurious or confirms that he committed perjury before this Court — makes plain that Cohen should be required to serve out the remainder of his supervised release term."

Cohen testified last fall that he falsely pleaded guilty to tax evasion in 2018 before Judge William Pauley.

"It gives rise to two possibilities: one, Cohen committed perjury when he pleaded guilty before Judge Pauley or, two, Cohen committed perjury in his October 2023 testimony," Furman wrote.

Furman's ruling gives support to Trump's claims that Cohen is not trustworthy, although days before he issued his decision, New York State Judge Juan Merchan rejected a bid from Trump's attorneys to prevent Cohen from testifying at the hush-money trial, which is expected to begin next month.

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