Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., filed an ethics complaint against the judge presiding over former President Donald Trump's criminal trial in Manhattan on Tuesday, Axios reported.
"Acting Judge [Juan] Merchan is in clear violation of section 100.3(E)(1)(d)(iii) of the Rules of Judicial Conduct for the New York State Unified Court System as his family has enriched itself through anti-Trump fundraising mentioning this case directly," Stefanik told Axios in a statement.
Stefanik requested an investigation from the New York State Commission on Judicial Conduct. Stefanik and other Trump supporters have called on Merchan to recuse himself from the trial because Merchan's daughter, Loren, does consulting work for Democrats.
A Trump acquittal would be "detrimental to Democrats, including clients of Judge Merchan's daughter," Stefanik wrote. ""If, on the other hand, [Trump] is convicted, such a verdict would provide a fundraising windfall for Democrat clients of Judge Merchan's daughter."
Trump is charged with falsifying business records on a $130,000 payment to his former lawyer Michael Cohen to reimburse him for paying porn actor Stormy Daniels to stop saying she had a sexual encounter with Trump. Trump has denied all charges and said the encounter never occurred.
Merchan refused to recuse himself last August, citing guidance from the New York court system's Advisory Committee on Judicial Ethics, Axios said.
Stefanik has filed five complaints against judges and prosecutors involved in cases against Trump including with the New York Commission on Judicial Conduct, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and the New York Bar Association.
Last month, Stefanik filed an ethics complaint with the Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility against special counsel Jack Smith, accusing him of trying to "unlawfully interfere with the 2024 presidential election" with his rush to bring former President Donald Trump to trial in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, incidents at the Capitol.
"It's obvious to any reasonable observer that Jack Smith is trying to interfere with the 2024 election and stop the American people from electing Donald Trump," the New York Republican said in a statement announcing the complaint. "At every turn, he has sought to accelerate his illegal prosecution of President Trump for the clear (if unstated) purpose of trying him before the November election."
Last November, a complaint Stefanik filed against the judge overseeing Trump's civil fraud trial was dismissed, Axios reported.
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Sam Barron has almost two decades of experience covering a wide range of topics including politics, crime and business.
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