Several criminal defense organizations believe former President and convicted felon Donald Trump received cushy treatment.
Various defense attorneys and legal advocacy groups cried foul following Trump's pre-sentencing interview, in which he was permitted to have attorney Todd Blanche present and allowed to virtually answer questions, rather than the more commonplace in-person conditions.
"This is just another example of our two-tiered system of justice," read the statement issued by The Legal Aid Society, The Bronx Defenders, New York County Defender Services, and Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, according to Business Insider.
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The four New York City-based public-defender organizations said Monday: "All people convicted of crimes should be allowed counsel in their probation interview, not just billionaires."
Blanche's attendance raised Thomas Eddy's eyebrows.
"In fairness, at least when clients are detained pending sentence, it will be a procedural nightmare to permit attorneys to attend," Rochester, New York defense attorney Thomas Eddy, told Business Insider. "How much trouble do you think Trump would get into today if Blanche wasn't there to muzzle him?".
Ivette Davila-Richards, deputy press secretary for Mayor Eric Adams' office, denied to the outlet that Trump was given white glove treatment, stating: "It's common — it's not unusual, and it's been an option from even before COVID."
"No exceptions are being made because it's President Trump," Davila-Richards said.
The president was said to have answered questions for less than 30 minutes with a probation officer.
“Earlier today, President Trump completed a routine interview with [the] New York Probation Office. The interview was uneventful and lasted less than thirty minutes,” a source familiar with the proceedings told CNN, adding: “The President and his team will continue to fight the lawless Manhattan DA Witch Hunt.”
The interview is part of a fact-finding process to build a case for the recommendation of punishment for Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan to use when he's expected to sentence the former president and presumptive Republican nominee for president on July 11.
Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records for scheming to hide payments to porn star Stormy Daniels who alleged a tryst with him back in 2006 inside of a Lake Tahoe, California, hotel room.
Trump denies the affair and has vowed to appeal.