Former President Donald Trump will not testify in his civil fraud case to avoid being asked about unrelated issues by New York Attorney General Letitia James' attorneys, former New Jersey Superior Court Judge Andrew Napolitano told Newsmax on Monday morning.
Trump posted Sunday on Truth Social that he will not take the stand Monday as had been expected.
Napolitano appeared on "Wake Up America" and explained why, in his mind, Trump would not be taking the stand.
"The real reason I think he's not taking the stand is because he doesn't want, and his lawyers don't want him to be, exposed to cross-examination by the government's lawyers," Napolitano told "Wake Up America" co-hosts Rob Finnerty and Sharla McBride.
"If you're a witness in a trial and you testify, you can be cross-examined about the subject of the testimony. But if you're a party in the trial, meaning you're the defendant and you testify, you can be cross-examined about anything that would affect your credibility."
Thus, James' lawyers could ask Trump about the events of Jan. 6, 2021, or the alleged mishandling of classified documents, or the election interference case in Georgia.
"That would be a very precarious situation for the former president to be in and I'm glad, for the sake of fairness to him and fairness in the trial, that he and his lawyers decided he should not take the stand," Napolitano said.
"On top of that, he's already testified when the government called him as their witness. He's explained his version of the documents. His organization has produced three experts, one of whom said the banks didn't lose a dime and two of whom said these things are not definite, there's always a little wiggle room.
"That's the way real estate practice is in New York City. So, I think he's in about as good a shape as he could expect to be given the pretrial rulings by this judge."
Napolitano also was asked about Hunter Biden, who has been subpoenaed to testify before the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on Wednesday behind closed doors. The panel is probing President Joe Biden’s alleged influence peddling in his family’s foreign business dealings.
Napolitano said that he expects Hunter Biden’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, to advise his client to appear before Congress but not to say much.
"I don't think that any DOJ [Department of Justice] would prosecute a criminal defendant who invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify," Napolitano said. "Now, if he doesn't show up, that's a serious issue.
"When you're subpoenaed, you have to show up unless your lawyers have negotiated some alternate arrangement. But if he shows up and invokes his Fifth Amendment right to remain silent, a right that all persons have in the United States of America, he can't be prosecuted for that."
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Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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