Judge temporarily puts Stormy Daniels lawsuit on hold
A California judge halted Stormy Daniels' lawsuit against Michael Cohen for 90 days while the criminal investigation of President Donald Trump's personal attorney moves forward in New York.
Cohen had asked to halt the lawsuit because he would assert his Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself while the criminal investigation continues. He said he wouldn't be able to fully respond to questions that arose in Daniels' lawsuit.
In short, the lawsuit put Cohen in the hot seat at the same time he's fending off the criminal probe.
Because Cohen was the "alleged mastermind" behind a hush agreement and settlement payment with Daniels over her alleged affair with Trump, the judge wrote, he would have to choose whether he would take the Fifth or defend himself on "every major aspect" of the details in the case.
When the FBI raided Cohen's hotel room, home and office earlier this month, the agency seized records related to Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford.
The pause in the lawsuit will prevent Daniels from attempting to depose Trump and gain access to other documents and testimony from Cohen. In her lawsuit, Daniels is asking whether the hush agreement was legal, and is looking at whether Trump consented to it, the judge in California wrote.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/judge-temporarily-puts-stormy-daniels-lawsuit-on-hold/ar-AAwrr1z?li=BBnb7Kz
