Trump Files Appeal With New York’s Appellate Division
In what may go down as one of the most politically choreographed prosecutions in American legal history, former President Donald Trump has officially launched his appeal to overturn the 34 felony convictions leveled against him in Manhattan by District Attorney Alvin Bragg — a man whose priorities seem to favor chaos over justice.
Bragg, who has cultivated a reputation for downgrading violent offenses and giving street-level criminals every benefit of the doubt, devoted over 18 months and likely millions in taxpayer dollars to pursue Trump over what amounts to business paperwork — a supposed falsification of records tied to a payment that is not, on its face, illegal.
And yet, in a legal maneuver that turned eyebrows across the country, Bragg elevated misdemeanors into felonies by arguing they were made in furtherance of a second, unnamed crime. Even more puzzling: jurors were not required to agree on what that second crime even was.
I’ve been saying it for years: political hack Alvin Bragg should be DISBARRED in disgrace.
He weaponized his office to target President Trump. His taxpayer-funded witch hunt is collapsing. Trump has every right to seek justice.
Accountability is coming. https://t.co/mqC1enQpNz
— Rep. Claudia Tenney (@RepTenney) October 28, 2025
In response, Trump’s legal team fired back with a sweeping appeal, spanning either 96 or 111 pages depending on the source, declaring the prosecution an abuse of the justice system and a prime example of “Radical Democrat Lawfare.” Their filing points to Supreme Court precedent, the constitutions of both the U.S. and New York, and common sense to argue that the conviction is unsound. A spokesman didn’t mince words, calling the case a “Witch Hunt” and asserting that the effort was always about political elimination, not justice.
The core allegation — that Trump paid hush money to a former adult film actress — hinges on a practice that is neither uncommon nor inherently illegal. Non-disclosure agreements are a staple in business settlements. But in Bragg’s hands, this transaction became the pretext for a felony case framed with the language of organized crime. This wasn’t law enforcement. This was theater.
And while Democrats express fresh outrage over Trump’s supposed “weaponization” of the legal system, they stood silent — or even cheered — as figures like New York AG Letitia James and Fulton County DA Fani Willis launched their own crusades against Trump. These cases, riddled with ethical concerns and suspect legal theory, reflect less of a pursuit of truth than a coordinated political strategy.
But now the winds may be shifting. As Trump allies begin to demand accountability for James Comey, John Bolton, and others who may have overstepped their roles in prior years, the outrage has suddenly returned — only this time from the very architects of the double standard.
Trump’s path forward is uncertain. Appeals in New York can drag on for years, and few expect an impartial playing field in a jurisdiction that bleeds blue. But in this legal marathon, the former president is showing no signs of retreat. Whether or not the convictions are tossed out, the larger trial unfolding is one not just of Donald Trump, but of the American justice system’s credibility itself.