A federal judge in Manhattan has raised doubts about the credibility of Michael Cohen, former personal lawyer to ex-President Donald Trump. The judge, Jesse M. Furman, questioned Cohen's truthfulness in a recent written order denying his request for early release from court supervision following his prison sentence for various crimes.
Furman specifically referenced Cohen's testimony at Trump's civil fraud trial last October, where Cohen claimed he was not guilty of tax evasion despite previously pleading guilty to the charge in 2018. This discrepancy led Furman to suggest that Cohen may have committed perjury either during his guilty plea or in his later testimony.
Trump has long criticized Cohen's credibility, accusing him of massive perjury during the civil fraud trial. Cohen initially testified that Trump directed him to inflate asset values, but later backtracked on this claim under cross-examination.
In response to Furman's findings, Cohen's lawyer disputed the judge's conclusion, arguing that Cohen had not disputed the underlying facts of his conduct and had been pressured into a coercive plea deal.
Despite the doubts raised by Furman, another judge in the civil fraud trial found Cohen to be credible, noting his relaxed manner and the general plausibility of his statements.
Additionally, Furman decided not to impose sanctions on a lawyer who mistakenly cited fake legal case citations in a court filing related to Cohen's case.
Cohen, who previously pleaded guilty to charges related to hush-money payments made on Trump's behalf, is a key witness in Trump's upcoming criminal trial. The trial has been delayed due to a last-minute evidence dump from a 2018 federal investigation into Cohen.
Trump's lawyers have accused the Manhattan district attorney's office of ignoring Cohen's alleged perjury while pursuing charges against others involved in the case.
Despite these challenges, the judge overseeing the hush-money trial has allowed Cohen to testify, stating that there is no precedent for barring a witness based solely on past credibility issues.
