Trump trial live updates: David Pecker resumes ‘catch and kill’ testimony as judge considers gag order ruling

Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial is now well underway with the prosecution and defence teams having presented their opening statements on Monday.

Tabloid media mogul David Pecker, who published The National Enquirer and was part of the “catch-and-kill” scheme at the heart of the case, also began giving testimony and has returned to the stand today.

Judge Juan Merchan will also rule today on complaints raised by Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg’s team about numerous instances of Mr Trump allegedly violating the terms of his gag order by posting bitterly about the case and its key participants on his Truth Social platform.

The defendant continued to whine on social media on Monday evening, calling Mr Bragg “an election denier” as he otherwise looked ahead to the Supreme Court’s hearing on his presidential immunity defence against prosecution, which will take place on Thursday.

Elsewhere on the legal front,an agreement has been reached over Mr Trump’s $175m bond to appeal the civil fraud trial ruling against him and witness statements in the classified documents case have been made public.

Alex Woodward is providing live updates from the courthouse throughout the trial.

Prosecution attorney Joshua Steinglass continues questioning former AMI boss David Pecker.

He’s asking if Pecker had access to AMI records and whether they include texts and emails kept on staff phones and computers.

Yes, he did, and yes they do.

Donald Trump’s former fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen has raged that “no one is above the law” and vowed that “truth will prevail” over the former president’s “incessant lying”, as he prepares to take the stand to testify in the historic hush money trial.

As the judge weighed potential gag order