Northeast

Trump says he would have 'loved' to testify in New York criminal trial

Published

2 years ago

June 2, 2024

Trump says he would have 'loved' to testify in New York criminal trial

Former President Trump delivered lengthy remarks Friday morning from Trump Tower in New York following his unprecedented trial resulting in the conviction of 34 counts of falsifying business records.

Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee for the 2024 election, said that he wished he testified in his criminal trial N.Y. v. Trump, though it appears he was given counsel otherwise.

“I would have testified. I wanted to testify,” Trump said from the podium.

“The theory is you never testify because as soon as you testify – anybody, if it were George Washington — don’t testify because they’ll get you on something that you said slightly wrong, and then they’ll sue you for perjury.”

“But I didn’t care about that. I wanted to,” Trump reiterated.

LEGAL EXPERTS SAY TRUMP CONVICTION IS A ‘TARGET RICH ENVIRONMENT’ FOR APPEAL

Former President Trump speaks during a news conference at Trump Tower on Friday, May 31, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)

However, he said, Judge Juan Merchan “allowed them to go into everything that I was ever involved in. Not this case – everything that I was ever involved in, which is a first.”

“In other words, you could go into every single thing that I ever did. Was he a bad boy here? Was he a bad boy there? And my lawyer said, ‘Why do you need to go through it? All you wanted to do is testify simply on this case.’”

“Because I would have loved to have testified, to this day I would have liked to have testified,” Trump said.

“But you would have been, you would have said something out of whack like it was a beautiful sunny day, and it was actually raining out,” Trump said, seemingly recalling a conversation with his legal counsel.

“And I very much appreciate the big crowd of people outside. That’s incredible what’s happening. The level of support has been incredible,” Trump immediately added.

Trump was charged by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on 34 counts of falsifying business records. Trump pleaded not guilty to all counts.

TRUMP GUILTY ON ALL COUNTS IN NEW YORK CRIMINAL TRIAL

Former President Trump appears in Manhattan Criminal Court on Thursday, May 30, 2024 in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, Pool)

Prosecutors needed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump falsified business records to conceal a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, a former porn star, in the lead-up to the 2016 election – in an effort to silence her about an alleged affair with Trump in 2006. They were ultimately successful. Trump has denied the affair throughout the trial.

“So the whole thing is this legal expense was marked down as legal expense,” Trump said on Thursday. “Think of that.”

Trump said fighting the case against him is “very important, far beyond me. And this can’t be allowed to happen to other presidents. It should never be allowed to happen in the future. But this is far beyond me. This is bigger than Trump. This is bigger than me. This is bigger than my presidency.”

Sentencing is slated for July 11, just four days before the Republican National Convention. Each count carries a maximum prison sentence of four years. In total, Trump faces a maximum sentence of 136 years behind bars.

NY V TRUMP: PROSECUTION SAYS THEY HAVE PRESENTED ‘POWERFUL EVIDENCE’ AGAINST FORMER PRESIDENT

Former President Trump holds a rally in the historically Democratic South Bronx on May 23, 2024 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

“We’re losing our country,” Trump said during his remarks that lasted roughly 40 minutes. He took no questions from the media.

“And I really think that this is an event… what took place yesterday with this judge that we have conflicted… he’s a crooked judge. And you’ll understand that. And I say that knowing that it’s very dangerous for me to say that. And I don’t mind because I’m willing to do whatever I have to do to save our country and to save our Constitution. I don’t mind,” Trump added.

Brianna Herlihy is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.

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Maine

NECEC conservation plan will not protect Maine’s mature forests | Opinion

Published

33 minutes ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

NECEC conservation plan will not protect Maine’s mature forests | Opinion

Robert Bryan is a licensed forester from Harpswell and author or co-author of numerous publications on managing forests for wildlife. Paul Larrivee is a licensed forester from New Gloucester who manages both private and public lands, and a former Maine Forest Service forester.

In November 2025, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a conservation plan and forest management plan as mitigation for impacts from the NECEC transmission corridor that runs from the Quebec border 53 miles to central Maine.

As professional foresters, we were astonished by the lack of scientific credibility in the definition of “mature forest habitat” that was approved by DEP, and the business-as-usual commercial forestry proposed for over 80% of the conservation area.

The DEP’s approval requires NECEC to establish and protect 50,000 acres to be managed for mature-forest wildlife species and wildlife travel corridors along riparian areas and between mature forest habitats. The conservation plan will establish an area adjacent to the new transmission corridor to be protected under a conservation easement held by the state. Under this plan, 50% of the area will be managed as mature forest habitat.

Under the forest management plan, a typical even-aged stand will qualify as “mature forest habitat” once 50 feet tall, which is only about 50 years old. These stands will lack large trees that provide wildlife denning and nesting sites, multiple vegetation layers that mature-forest birds use for nesting and feeding habitats and large decaying trees and downed logs that provide habitat for insects, fungi and small mammals, which in turn benefit larger predators.

Another major concern is that contrary to the earlier DEP order, the final approval allows standard sustainable forestry operations on the 84% of the forest located outside the stream buffers and special habitats. These stands may be harvested as soon as they achieve the “mature forest habitat” definition, as long as 50% of the conserved land is maintained as “mature.”

After the mature forest goal is reached, clearcutting or other heavy harvesting could occur on thousands of acres every 10 years. Because the landowner — Weyerhaeuser — owns several hundred thousand acres in the vicinity, any reductions in harvesting within the conservation area can simply be offset by cutting more heavily nearby. As a result, the net
mature-forest benefit of the conservation area will be close to zero.

Third, because some mature stands will be cut before the 50% mature forest goal is reached, it will take 40 years — longer than necessary — to reach the goal.

In the near future the Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) will consider an appeal from environmental organizations of the plan approval. To ensure that ecologically mature forest develops in a manner that meets the intent of the DEP/BEP orders, several things need to change.

First and most important, to ensure that characteristics of mature forest habitat have time to develop it is critical that the definition include clear requirements for the minimum number of large-diameter (hence more mature) trees, adjusted by forest type. At least half the stocking of an area of mature forest habitat should be in trees at least 10 inches in diameter, and at least 20% of stands beyond the riparian buffers should have half the stocking in trees greater than or equal to 16 inches in diameter.

Current research as well as guidelines for defining ecologically mature forests, such as those in Maine Audubon’s Forestry for Maine Birds, should be followed.

Second, limits should be placed on the size and distribution of clearcut or “shelterwood” harvest patches so that even-aged harvests are similar in size to those created by typical natural forest disturbance patterns. These changes will help ensure that the mature-forest block and connectivity requirements of the orders are met.

Third, because the forest impacts have already occurred, no cutting should be allowed in the few stands that meet or exceed the DEP-approved definition — which needs to be revised as described above — until the 50% or greater mature-forest goal is reached.

If allowed to stand, the definitions and management described in the forest management plan would set a terrible precedent for conserving mature forests in Maine. The BEP should uphold the appeal and establish standards for truly mature forest habitat.

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Massachusetts

Foul play suspected after human remains found in water in Shirley

Published

51 minutes ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Foul play suspected after human remains found in water in Shirley

Human remains were discovered Wednesday in the water in Shirley, Massachusetts, and authorities suspect foul play.

Police in Shirley said in a social media post at 7:15 p.m. that they responded to “a suspicious object in the water near the Maritime Veterans Memorial Bridge on Shaker Road.” Massachusetts State Police later said the object was believed to be human remains.

The bridge crosses Catacoonamug Brook near Phoenix Pond.

The office of Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said a group of young people was walking in the area around 5:30 p.m. and “reported seeing what appeared to be something consistent with a body part in the water.”

Foul play is suspected, Ryan’s office said.

Authorities will continue investigating overnight into Thursday, and an increased police presence is expected in the area.

No further information was immediately available.

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