Why a gag order against Trump would be a good idea

[superadmin]

(CNN)CNN and other news organizations have reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that a Manhattan grand jury indicted the Trump Organization and its Chief Financial Officer, Allen Weisselberg, on Wednesday. It's now a safe bet to expect former President Donald Trump to go on his usual rampage -- an all-out verbal assault on prosecutors, judges and the court in his desperate attempt to discredit the case. Make no mistake about it, Shakespeare was right when he wrote, "What's past is prologue."

One must have been sleeping through the Trump presidency not to expect that a wounded Trump will do and say anything to prejudice the fair administration of justice. Now, the district attorney should ask the judge at the arraignment to impose a strict gag order restraining Trump, the Trump family, prosecutors, defense attorneys and all witnesses from making any public statements intended to prevent a fair trial, free of prejudice. A violation of a gag order is the crime of contempt of a court order with a potential one year in jail.

I have personally been involved in a number of high-profile cases where gag orders were imposed, and they are not unusual in high publicity criminal cases. Harvey Weinstein, Michael Jackson, Paul Manafort are just a few of the recent cases in which judges restricted attorneys, defendants and witnesses from speaking publicly.

- More -