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New York — Donald Trump asked a New York County judge to terminate gag orders restricting the former president from making out-of-court statements during his criminal trial, arguing that the "restrictions" on his First Amendment rights are no longer warranted now that the trial has come to an end.

Todd Blanche, one of Trump's attorneys, sent the letter Monday to New York County Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, and it was filed with the court on Tuesday. Trump has insisted that the orders continue to restrain him while experts have told Law360 that the restrictions likely didn't outlive the guilty verdict, which was handed down Thursday.

Blanche says in his letter that, following the trial, "the concerns articulated by the government and the court do not justify continued restrictions on the First Amendment rights of President Trump — who remains the leading candidate in the 2024 presidential election — and the American people."

Blanche cites a May 28 event President Joe Biden's campaign held outside the Manhattan courthouse, public comments Biden made regarding the verdict, and "continued public attacks against President Trump by government witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels" as reasons the court must lift restrictions on Trump's speech. Blanche also pointed to the upcoming presidential debate set for June 27.

"The defense does not concede that there was ever a valid basis for the gag order and reserves the right to challenge the irreparable First Amendment harms caused by the order," Blanche clarified in a footnote.

Justice Merchan issued several orders during the trial that prohibited Trump from making statements outside of court about the jury, witnesses, prosecutors, and family members of the justice and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the charges. The judge also held Trump in contempt for violating the orders in 10 different statements, explicitly threatening to send Trump to jail if he violated the gag orders again.

Trump said on Friday that he is still subject to the orders, and Blanche said that same day that he intended to ask the judge to clarify whether the orders were still in effect.

Following the guilty verdict, experts told Law360 that the orders were probably no longer a factor because their main purpose — protecting the integrity of the trial proceedings — no longer exists.

The district attorney's office declined to comment, and Blanche didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment late Tuesday.

Trump was convicted by a jury of 34 felonies stemming from a plot to illegally sway the 2016 presidential election in his favor by hiding hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. The verdict was returned after the jury had deliberated for roughly 12 hours.

Specifically, jurors found Trump guilty of violating a state law that forbids creating bogus business records with the intent to defraud as part of an effort to aid, commit or conceal another crime — in this case, an unlawful conspiracy to win the White House.

New York is represented by Joshua Steinglass, Christopher Conroy, Susan Hoffinger, Matthew Colangelo, Rebecca Mangold, and Katherine Ellis of the New York County District Attorney's Office.

Trump is represented by Todd Blanche, Emil Bove, and Stephen Weiss of Blanche Law PLLC, Susan Necheles and Gedalia Stern of NechelesLaw LLP, and Steven Yurowitz of Yurowitz Law PLLC.

The case is New York v. Donald Trump, case number 71543-23, in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.