Stormy Daniels' Graphic Testimony Draws Ire from Trump's Defense, Judge

Adult film actress Stormy Daniels' explicit account of an alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump during her testimony in his criminal trial has sparked objections from Trump's attorneys and led the judge to characterize it as "unnecessary" and "prejudicial."

The high-profile criminal trial of former President Donald Trump resumed Thursday with continued cross-examination of adult film actress Stormy Daniels, whose graphic testimony on Wednesday has drawn objections from Trump's defense attorneys and a rebuke from the judge.

Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, took the stand on Tuesday and provided detailed testimony about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump in a hotel room in 2006. Trump has denied the allegations, and his attorneys have argued that Daniels' testimony is irrelevant to the charges against him.

On Wednesday, Judge Juan Merchan reprimanded Daniels for providing "unnecessary" details about the alleged encounter. Trump's defense attorney, Todd Blanche, moved for a mistrial, arguing that Daniels' testimony was "prejudicial" and had "nothing to do with this case."

Blanche also questioned how the defense could "come back from this" in a way that would be "fair" to Trump. "We believe there should be a mistrial," he said, "or that this witness’s testimony is excluded and extremely limited."

Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger defended Daniels' testimony, arguing that it was "probative to Trump's intent" and that the defense had been fully briefed on her testimony prior to trial.

Merchan denied Blanche's motion for a mistrial, but admitted that he was doing everything he could to control Daniels' testimony.

"I agree that it would have been better if some of these things had been left unsaid," Merchan said.

The trial stems from a years-long investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office into alleged hush money payments made to Daniels by Trump's former attorney, Michael Cohen, ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Prosecutors are attempting to prove that Trump falsified business records related to the payments in violation of state law.

The trial is expected to continue for several more weeks, with additional witnesses expected to testify.