Judge Under Fire From Donald Trump Was a Steely Drug Prosecutor

[Eugene]

Source: New York Times

Judge Under Fire From Donald Trump Was a Steely Drug Prosecutor

By ALAN RAPPEPORT JUNE 3, 2016

For much of a year, Gonzalo P. Curiel, then a federal prosecutor in California, lived officially in hiding.

He hunkered down for a while on a naval base and in other closely guarded locations under the protection of United States marshals. Even his siblings did not know exactly where he was at times.

The reason: In a secretly taped conversation inside a San Diego prison, a man accused of being a gunman for a Mexican drug cartel said that he had received permission from his superiors to have Mr. Curiel assassinated.

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The presiding judge in a lawsuit filed by former students of Trump University, he has been called a “hater” of Mr. Trump by the presumptive Republican presidential nominee himself. At a rally last week, Mr. Trump said the judge “happens to be, we believe, Mexican,” suggesting that he was biased because of Mr. Trump’s calls to build a wall along the border to prevent illegal immigration. Angry supporters have been calling the judge’s chambers.

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While Judge Curiel has declined to discuss the case publicly, those who know him best say he is handling the unfriendly glare of the Trump case with the resolve that got him through his toughest days as a prosecutor.

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Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/04/us/politics/donald-trump-university-judge-gonzalo-curiel.html

[PJMcK]

1. Mr. Trump's comments don't seem wise

Could a member of DU with legal knowledge, please indicate if Donald Trump's comments about Judge Curiel represents a sound legal strategy?

It seems as if he's trying to goad the judge into making a public statement that would jeopardize his adjudication of the lawsuit. Based on Judge Curiel professional history, it also seems like Mr. Trump has gone up against someone who can't be bullied. Further, Mr. Trump's lawyers must find themselves in rather uncomfortable positions with the judge.

What are the possible results of this situation? Thanks, in advance.

[Volaris]

3. I'm in no way a lawyer

But it seems like talking shit about a Judge would be a pretty efficient way to get slapped with a Contempt of Court charge. If HIS lawyers are smart, seems like they would tell him to shut his yap and do it with The Quickness.

[Person 2713]

2. Trump wants to blame the outcome of his lawsuit on Mexicans I guess

His voters can't wait to agree