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Porn star Stormy Daniels in NYC hush money trial alleges sexual encounter with Trump • South Dakota Searchlight

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Porn star Stormy Daniels in NYC hush money trial alleges sexual encounter with Trump • South Dakota Searchlight


WASHINGTON — Adult film star Stormy Daniels told a Manhattan jury Tuesday about meeting Donald Trump in a penthouse suite in 2006, where he told the actress not to worry about his wife and that she reminded him of his daughter shortly before they had sex.

The testimony, reported by journalists in the courtroom, described in granular detail the intimate physical encounter with a former president, who is now facing charges in New York for falsifying records of hush-money payments to the actress and director. Trump is the first former president to face criminal charges.

Trump, the presumed 2024 Republican presidential nominee, denies the encounter.

Daniels was called to the stand in the trial’s fourth week as prosecutors aim to prove that Trump covered up a $130,000 payment to silence the star during his 2016 presidential campaign.

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The former president faces 34 felony charges for allegedly disguising the payments, reimbursed to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, as “legal expenses.” The Trump organization eventually paid Cohen $420,000 to account for taxes and a bonus.

Book editor testifies

The trial opened Tuesday with a brief appearance from witness Sally Franklin. Franklin is an executive and editor with Penguin Random House, the publisher of some of Trump’s books, including “Trump: How to Get Rich” and “Trump: Think Like a Billionaire.”

Prosecutors led jurors through excerpts of Trump’s books, including portions where Trump claims to always sign checks personally and that he fastidiously kept track of funds going in and out of the Trump Organization.

On Monday, the jury heard from both a former and current finance employee of the Trump Organization about the payments to Cohen. The prosecutors used the testimony to show the jurors financial documentation, including the 11 checks personally signed by Trump.

The New York case is the first of four criminal indictments against Trump to reach the trial stage. The likelihood of the other cases reaching trial before the November election dwindled further Tuesday when a federal district judge in Florida indefinitely postponed the trial date in Trump’s classified documents case that had been scheduled for May 20.

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‘My motivation wasn’t money’

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, testified for several hours, telling the jury about a reluctant sexual encounter with Trump and multiple public meetings with him in the following months as he dangled a possible appearance for her on NBC’s “The Apprentice,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

New York does not allow video or audio recording in the courtroom but provides public transcripts of the proceedings.

Trump says he’d use police, National Guard and possibly the military to expel immigrants

Journalists reported Judge Juan Merchan growing irritated with Daniels’ long and detailed testimony, at times chastising her and telling her to stick to the questions. Merchan sustained objections from Trump’s team, and at times objected on his own.

The actress described meeting Trump in 2006 at a Lake Tahoe golf tournament where she was promoting Wicked Pictures, an adult film company.

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Initially refusing an invitation for dinner, Daniels then agreed to meet Trump for the meal in his luxury hotel suite. Daniels testified that Trump answered the door in silky pajamas, and she asked him to get changed.

After dinner, Daniels testified, she was shocked that Trump had stripped down to his underclothes and then positioned himself between her and the door when she attempted to leave, according to reporters at the courthouse.

She testified that she didn’t say no “because I didn’t say anything at all.”

Daniels said she stopped taking Trump’s calls in 2007 after he couldn’t guarantee her an appearance on the NBC show.

In the ensuing years, her story appeared on an obscure website, and Daniels talked about being approached in 2011 by a man who threatened her and told her to keep quiet about the encounter.

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Daniels testified that after Trump announced his presidential run in 2015 her publicist unsuccessfully tried to sell her story. Interest only heated up, however, in October 2016 after the surfacing of an “Access Hollywood” tape in which Trump brags that his fame allows him to grab women’s genitals.

“My motivation wasn’t money. It was to get the story out,” she said, according to reporters at the courthouse.

Trump and Cohen reached out to Daniels’ publicist Gina Rodriguez to buy her story, after which Daniels said she decided keeping quiet would be the safest option for her and her family.

Daniels eventually received $96,000 of the $130,000 payment, after her manager and lawyer took fees, she testified.

A mistrial attempt

Trump’s defense lawyer Todd Blanche moved for a mistrial Tuesday afternoon, arguing Daniels’ testimony went beyond what was necessary for the case.

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Blanche especially took issue with Daniels describing from the witness stand her feelings about the alleged affair and her claim that Trump didn’t wear a condom.

Trump fined $9,000 for violating gag order in NY hush-money trial

While Merchan told the defense that some things would have been “better left unsaid,” he denied the motion for a mistrial.

Daniels returned to the stand in the afternoon as Trump attorney Susan Necheles aimed to discredit her, accusing her of making “a lot of money” from her story, according to reporters at the courthouse.

Necheles also questioned Daniels about the 2011 encounter with the man she said threatened her. At the time Daniels was in a parking lot on the way into a “mommy and me” class with her baby.

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Necheles cast doubt on the veracity of the story, saying “Your daughter’s life was in jeopardy and you did not tell her father,” according to reporters at the courthouse. Daniels said she kept the story and the parking lot encounter secret from her husband.

In a further attempt to poke holes in Daniels’ testimony, Necheles asked why the porn star decided she wanted to sell her story in 2016 after having been so afraid of threats.

Necheles said Daniels saw an “opportunity to make money,” to which Daniels responded, “I saw the opportunity to get the story out. I didn’t put a price tag on it,” according to reporters at the courthouse.

Merchan dismissed the jury at 4:30 p.m. Eastern. Trump’s team is expected to continue cross-examination Wednesday.

In response to Daniels’ testimony, Trump posted in all caps on his platform Truth Social Tuesday afternoon: “THE PROSECUTION, WHICH HAS NO CASE, HAS GONE TOO FAR. MISTRIAL!”

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The post followed an earlier one that had since been deleted, according to media reports. The earlier post expressed anger that Daniels was unexpectedly being called to the witness stand.

Trump was fined $1,000 Monday for again violating his gag order, which prevents him from posting about witnesses. The former president was fined for nine other gag order violations on April 30.

 

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These 15 South Dakota counties will see DUI checkpoints this month

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These 15 South Dakota counties will see DUI checkpoints this month



The monthly law enforcement effort helps to reduce alcohol-related deaths on the road.

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The South Dakota Department of Public Safety is raising awareness this month on the dangers of drinking and driving.

Sobriety checkpoints take place statewide every month, usually hitting about 15 counties, in hopes of reminding motorists to “make responsible choices and avoid driving after drinking alcohol, whether or not a checkpoint is planned in their area,” says DPS communications director Brad Reiners.

DPS also announces ahead of time which counties will be monitored, most often Codington, Lincoln, Meade, Minnehaha and Pennington counties.

What is a sobriety checkpoint?

A sobriety checkpoint is a law enforcement effort that stops vehicles at pre-determined locations to identify and arrest impaired drivers as necessary.

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These police stops are not based on unrelated violations of the law (ie., speeding, reckless driving, no seatbelt). Rather, officers are stopping any vehicle in a set pattern in a highly visible location that a driver will approach and must comply with.

Beyond arrests for driving under the influence (DUIs), including breathalyzer tests (PBTs) to determine blood alcohol level (BAC) as needed, the systematic effort is designed to “reduce impaired driving and improve roadway safety,” Reiners said.

South Dakota counties where checkpoints will take place in March include:

  • Beadle
  • Brookings
  • Brown
  • Clay
  • Codington
  • Day
  • Hughes
  • Hutchinson
  • Jones
  • Lawrence
  • Lincoln
  • Lyman
  • Meade
  • Minnehaha
  • Pennington

How many sobriety checkpoints took place in Minnehaha County in 2025?

Other than confirming counties ahead of time, Reiners says time, day and exact location of each checkpoint cannot be confirmed.

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Here’s a look at totals from sobriety checkpoints in Minnehaha County in 2025.

Reiners says the number of vehicle stops is merely based on how many happen to drive through a checkpoint that day:

  • January: 30 vehicles stopped, 3 PBTs, no DUI arrests
  • February: 18 vehicles stopped, 1 PBT, no DUI arrests
  • March: 150 vehicles stopped, 9 PBTs, no DUI arrests
  • August: 49 vehicles stopped, 1 PBT, no DUI arrests
  • September: 105 vehicles stopped, 14 PBTs, no DUI arrests
  • November: 63 vehicles stopped, 2 PBTs, 2 DUI arrests

How many fatal, alcohol-related car accidents are there in South Dakota?

According to the South Dakota Department of Health, among 365 alcohol-related deaths in 2024, 19% were because of a transportation/machinery accident, the second-most common cause.

The leading cause of alcohol-related deaths in 2024 was poisoning/toxic effects, at 24%.

Counties that most often experience overall alcohol-related deaths include Buffalo, Mellette, Corson, Oglala Lakota and Dewey counties.

Overall, males make up 65% of alcohol-related deaths in South Dakota from 2015-2024, almost two times higher than the female rate, with ages 30-69 at the highest risk.

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Operation: Prairie Thunder not involved in sobriety checkpoints

DPS officials say the S.D. Office of Highway Patrol, the South Dakota Highway Patrol (SDHP) and local law enforcement agencies support DUI checkpoints, which are funded by the South Dakota Office of Highway Safety (SDHS).

Although Operation: Prairie Thunder (OPT) recently completed its 11th saturation patrol in Watertown on Feb. 26-27 – missions that bring together the SDHP with the city, county and federal law enforcement partners – SDHS officials stated last week that “sobriety checkpoints are not conducted as part of Operation: Prairie Thunder.”

Rather, OPT consists of targeted saturation patrols focused on criminal activity in a variety of communities.

Since its inception in August of last year, here’s a look at where total numbers stand for OPT, provided by the DPS.

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Ongoing Operation: Prairie Thunder running totals

  • 443 arrests
  • 281 individuals in custody with a drug charge
  • 162 in custody without a drug charge
  • 473 individuals with a drug charge
  • 192 charged and released

Operation: Prairie Thunder criminal drug apprehension totals

  • 1,109 drug charges
  • 318 felony drug charges
  • 791 misdemeanor drug charges
  • 81 felony warrants
  • 168 misdemeanor warrants

Operation: Prairie Thunder ICE contacts

  • 93 contacted
  • 95 interviewed
  • 71 in custody
  • 9 apprehended for cartel / gang
  • 10 identified for cartel / gang
  • No human trafficking arrests
  • No recoveries

Operation: Prairie Thunder traffic enforcement

  • 42 DUIs
  • 5 reckless driving
  • 2,244 citations
  • 2,725 warnings

The South Dakota governor’s office announced last December that operations will continue into 2026.



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SD Lottery Millionaire for Life winning numbers for March 8, 2026

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The South Dakota Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at March 8, 2026, results for each game:

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from March 8 drawing

01-31-32-45-52, Bonus: 05

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

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Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your prize

  • Prizes of $100 or less: Can be claimed at any South Dakota Lottery retailer.
  • Prizes of $101 or more: Must be claimed from the Lottery. By mail, send a claim form and a signed winning ticket to the Lottery at 711 E. Wells Avenue, Pierre, SD 57501.
  • Any jackpot-winning ticket for Dakota Cash or Lotto America, top prize-winning ticket for Lucky for Life, or for the second prizes for Powerball and Mega Millions must be presented in person at a Lottery office. A jackpot-winning Powerball or Mega Millions ticket must be presented in person at the Lottery office in Pierre.

When are the South Dakota Lottery drawings held?

  • Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
  • Mega Millions: 10 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
  • Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
  • Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Dakota Cash: 9 p.m. CT on Wednesday and Saturday.
  • Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a South Dakota editor. You can send feedback using this form.



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Kristi Noem’s term as governor freshly roasted by former South Dakota mayor: ‘She did a Sarah Palin’

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Kristi Noem’s term as governor freshly roasted by former South Dakota mayor: ‘She did a Sarah Palin’


Kristi Noem’s stint as governor of South Dakota has come under fresh scrutiny by a former local mayor, who said she “did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” just days after she was fired from her role as Homeland Security secretary.

Noem, who served as governor from 2019 to 2025, became the first cabinet member to be fired by Trump during his second term.

The embarrassing dismissal came amid growing scrutiny of her aggressive immigration operations across the country, DHS’s purchase of multiple luxury jets for staff, major reductions in FEMA staff, and rumors of an affair with adviser Corey Lewandowski.

Mike Levsen, the former mayor of Aberdeen in Noem’s home state of South Dakota, says her dismissal came as no surprise given her “lack of any significant accomplishment” during her time as governor of the state.

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“The Noem governorship covered six years — then did a ‘Sarah Palin’ and quit,” Levsen wrote in a blog post, comparing Noem to the former Alaska Gov. who resigned midway through her first term, citing mounting legal fees being brought by various ethics investigations being brought against her. Palin was Senator John McCain’s running mate during the 2008 presidential election.

Kristi Noem’s tenure as governor has come under criticism following her firing as DHS secretary (AFP/Getty)

“Her legacy was minimal involvement with the Legislature, frequent absences, no transparency, repeated operational screwups, soaring turnover and instances of self-dealing for herself and her family,” Levsen wrote.

Levsen criticized Noem’s Covid-era ad campaign, “Freedom Works Here,” as a “Trump-based ploy that likely contributed to South Dakota’s listing high on some periodical per capita death lists.”

The campaign, which attempted to draw new residents to the state, cost $6.5 million, and South Dakota News Watch reported at the time that there were “hurdles” with the campaign.

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Levsen also noted Noem’s “difficult relationship” with tribal governments, as all nine of South Dakota’s indigenous tribes voted in 2024 to ban Noem from their lands, according to CNN.

“Is there a single thing in South Dakota now better as a result of her time in office?” Levsen questioned in the post.

Noem was fired by Trump amidst mounting scrutiny over fallout in Minnesota, following DHS’s disastrous Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis, which saw two U.S. citizens shot dead in confrontations with federal agents.

Noem described the two Americans, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, as domestic terrorists. She has refused to apologize for the comments.

She also drew fierce criticism with her purchase of multiple luxury jets, a $220 million ad campaign, gutting FEMA, and her rumored affair with Lewandowski.

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Noem was axed by President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post Thursday (Getty)

Noem was axed by President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post Thursday (Getty)

The final nail in the coffin appears to have been Noem’s congressional testimony this past week, during which lawmakers from both sides of the aisle criticized her management and judgment.

A day after her second hearing, Trump wrote on Truth Social that Noem was out at DHS — and that he was nominating Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin to replace her.

An administration official told NBC News that the president axed Noem due to “a culmination of her many unfortunate leadership failures, including the fallout in Minnesota, the ad campaign, the allegations of infidelity, the mismanagement of her staff, and her constant feuding with the heads of other agencies, including CBP and ICE.”

“Kristi’s drama sadly overshadowed and distracted from the Administration’s extremely popular immigration agenda, which will continue full force,” the official added.

Before she was fired, Noem defended her performance during her hearings on Capitol Hill.

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She also drew fire for insisting that the $220 million DHS ad campaign had been launched with the president’s approval, which Trump has denied.

Days after her humiliating firing, Trump named Noem as special envoy for “The Shield of the Americas,” a new security initiative that Trump says will focus on the Western Hemisphere.



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