Prosecutors could obtain a huge amount of information about Donald Trump when former White House communications director Hope Hicks gives evidence in his hush money case, a lawyer has said.
New York attorney Colleen Kerwick told Newsweek that Hicks will be "a compelling witness."
"While Hicks doesn't appear to have an axe to grind with the Trumps, a seasoned prosecutor may be able to unlock a treasure trove of testimony from her," Kerwick said.
Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is the first former president in United States history to stand trial in a criminal case. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide payments to Daniels.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg seeks to prove that before the 2016 presidential election, Trump paid, or discussed paying, Daniels not to discuss an alleged affair they had. Trump denies the affair.
Newsweek reached out to Trump's attorney via email for comment on Tuesday.
Hicks is expected to confirm much of testimony of former National Enquirer publisher, David Pecker, who told the trial that the tabloid bought up negative stories and hid negative stories about Trump to help him get elected in 2016.
Kerwick said that Hicks is a good communicator who should impress the jury.
"She knows how to spin a narrative as a public relations executive and has a history of being well prepared for testimony," Kerwick said.
Hicks already spoke about Trump's alleged hush payments during the Mueller investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.
"During the Mueller investigation, Hicks denied any knowledge of the hush money payments at the time it was arranged but gave a nice soundbite of Trump saying 'nobody will care about my legacy if I lose...the only thing that matters is winning,'" Kerwick said.
Kerwick said that Hicks will now be able to give compelling evidence about the National Enquirer arrangement between Pecker and Trump's lawyer, Michael Cohen.
Pecker kept Cohen informed of his attempts to buy up and hide negative stories about Trump.
"Hicks was on a phone call with Trump and Cohen the day Trump was informed that Stormy Daniels was seeking to sell her story of an affair with Trump, along with a second phone call on the day after Cohen paid Daniels $130,000 in exchange for her silence," Kerwick said.
Hicks spent "hours" in a meeting with Bragg's staff but did not comment on their discussions to reporters, according to a March 2023 report from The Associated Press.
Hicks at one point spoke with Trump and his former attorney Cohen over the phone amid efforts to prevent the alleged Daniels affair from becoming public knowledge, according to the AP report.
She was also interviewed in 2022 by the House select committee investigating the January 6, 2021, riot in the U.S. Capitol, in which Trump supporters violently protested the 2020 presidential results.
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Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more
