WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday declined to intervene in a long-running lawsuit filed by the state of Missouri seeking to block legal proceedings in former President Donald Trump’s hush-money case in New York.
The court has denied Missouri’s request to sue New York state, meaning the justices will not lift the gag order or delay the ruling in the unusual claim filed by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican who is running for a full term this fall.
Many commentators said the filing was more of a political stunt to gain publicity than a serious legal claim.
The brief order noted that two conservative justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, would have at least allowed the state to file its lawsuit directly with the Supreme Court, though they would not grant the emergency relief Bailey sought. That is consistent with their approach in similar cases in which one state sues another.
Trump was convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to payments to lawyers. Michael Cohen as compensation for hush-money payments to porn star Storm Daniels in the final days of the 2016 campaign. Daniels testified that she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, which he has denied.
New York Judge Juan Merchan first issued a gag order in March, ahead of Trump’s trial. After the trial, Merchan lifted some of the restrictions, allowing him to speak about the witnesses who testified and the jury.
Trump is still barred from commenting on court staff, individual prosecutors and family members of those involved in the case.
It is unclear whether Trump will be convicted before the November election. Sentencing was originally scheduled for July but has been postponed until September at the earliest.
Bailey took the rare step of suing New York state in the Supreme Court, which has jurisdiction over disputes between states.
Typically, such disputes involve issues such as water rights on rivers that cross state lines.
It would have been highly unusual for the Supreme Court to allow one state to interfere with judicial proceedings in another state.
Bailey argued in his petition that the gag order and potential penalty prevented Missouri voters from hearing relevant information from a presidential candidate during the campaign.
“Missouri has a compelling, legally enforceable interest in ensuring that its citizens and voters can hear Trump’s campaign without the gag order or other interference imposed by the State of New York,” he wrote in the court document.
In response to the claims, New York Attorney General Letitia James said there was no basis for the Supreme Court to intervene, saying the complaint was “general and speculative.”
Trump, she added, “can already talk about all the topics” the state says voters would like to know more about.
Bailey, James said, “clearly and improperly attempts to advance the individual interests of former President Trump.”
Before the trial, Trump was fined for violating the original gag order, particularly as it related to Cohen, one of the key witnesses.
Bailey was appointed attorney general by Missouri Governor Mike Parson when incumbent Senator Eric Schmitt was elected to the Senate in 2022. Bailey is now running for a full term.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
