The Manhattan District Attorney's Office probe into former US President Donald Trump may not be as imperiled as previously thought because an obscure law regarding most felonies grants authorities double the amount of time to track down additional witnesses, review more relevant documents, and ultimately build the DA office’s case.
Per the report, New York law enforcement agencies are granted up to five years from the date of an alleged crime to officially file charges for most felonies. Furthermore, New York law § 30.10(4)(a)(i) stipulates that the aforementioned grace period may be paused if the defendant is outside the state.
Under the law, if Manhattan prosecutors level the anticipated charge of ‘falsifying business records’ against Trump, the office would be allowed to peruse and cite financial documents with signatures dating back to 2012, a former prosecutor told the Daily Beast.
The source requested anonymity due to their potential ties to the Trump case in New York.
However, a rare criminal charge relating to ‘enterprise corruption’ would grant prosecutors an extra five years, allowing them to dig through documents filed as early as 2007.
“How is that legal?” asked several aides to the former US president, according to the report.
At least five Trump advisers, including ex- and present-day attorneys, admitted to the Daily Beast that they were not aware of the obscure and little-known law.
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Those close to the US president revealed to the outlet that 45 does not appear that optimistic about future litigious matters, as he has bemoaned to close associates that he will be in court “for the rest of my life.” At least three sources close to Trump made note of his outlook.
“He tells this joke that he’s making his lawyers’ boat payments, because of how he’s the ‘most investigated’ person in the world,” recounted one of the sources.
While the law is not commonly used in New York courts, a similar intermission, or “tolling” period, has been imposed by Florida, which grants authorities a maximum three-year extension in cases where the defendant is “continuously absent from the state.”
Meanwhile, the state of Georgia allows an indefinite pause to the statute of limitations in civil cases.
Despite the extension, New York prosecutors will have to make a decision on whether to extend the ongoing cases, or scrap their efforts altogether and restart proceedings with a fresh jury pool.
The latter would likely result in ethical questions, including accusations that the prosecution was ‘jury shopping,’ the Daily Beast highlighted. Furthermore, witnesses would have to redeliver their testimony in a way that does not discredit their initial remarks.
During the grace period, prosecutors would of course have more time to gather additional witnesses, but they will also gain time and opportunity to pressure Trump Organization employees to flip on their boss.
In this image taken from video, Manhattan district attorney candidate Alvin Bragg answers questions during an interview, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021, in New York. Bragg, a Democrat, is widely expected to defeat Republican Thomas Kenniff in the general election ending Nov. 2. The winner, replacing the retiring Cyrus Vance Jr., will take office in January and inherit high-profile cases, including the prosecution of former President Donald Trump's company and its longtime finance chief for tax fraud.
© AP Photo / David R. Martin
At the same time, prosecutors’ extended efforts could come in vain if they cannot sway District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr., who has signaled that he would not be signing off on any indictment brought against Trump, unless a stronger criminal case is presented.
The February resignations of top prosecutors Carey Dunne and Mark Pomerantz placed compounded public pressure on Bragg, whose reluctance to file charges against Trump was cited by both Dunne and Pomerantz.
Bragg issued a memo last week claiming that, despite media speculation and public backlash, matters related to the DA's probe–including “unauthorized public disclosures”--should remain under wraps because such interference could upend justice-seeking and negatively affect a defendant’s right to a fair trial.
"In short, as we have previously said, the investigation continues," he concluded.
“It’s hard to think that a new prosecutor would blow the dust off of something and start up a whole investigation when this has been going on for years, assuming a decision not to prosecute is Bragg’s final word on it,” said Adam Kaufmann, an attorney who ran the investigative unit of the Manhattan DA’s Office for three years