Brandon Livesay
Reporting from New York

We have finished our live coverage of Donald Trump's hush-money trial for Thursday.

Our New York team will be back tomorrow to bring you the latest updates from inside the courthouse. It will be Madeleine Westerhout back on the witness stand, where she will be cross-examined by Trump's lawyers.

To catch up on what happened today, you can read this article.

Our reporters in court today were Kayla Epstein, Madeline Halpert and Nada Tawfik. This page was edited by Tiffany Wertheimer and myself.

Thanks for joining us.

It's been another big day of testimony - here are the key points:

• We knew Stormy Daniels was back on the stand, and so many people turned up to watch proceedings, about 200 were turned away.
• Susan Necheles continued her effort to portray Daniels as a Trump hater who wanted to make money from her story, but a defiant Daniels claimed she didn’t need money, and wanted the NDA to protect her family.

• Daniels was grilled about her career in the adult-film industry and about her interest in the paranormal, as Trump’s lawyer attempted to discredit her in front of the jury.

Madeleine Westerhout was the other key witness today - she was Trump's former White House assistant. She was forced to resign from the Oval Office after leaking information about Trump's family.

• Westerhout said she was in Trump's inner circle, and worked closely with him in the White House.
• She cried when explaining why she had to leave the job.
• And she gave fascinating testimony about how Trump crafts his infamous tweets - including having to transcribe them and print them out for him to edit and approve.

After the jury left for the day, Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche argued that Trump's gag order should be amended so he can respond to Stormy Daniels' allegations. But Justice Merchan denied the request.

There was also another motion for a mistrial, which the judge denied.

Donald Trump’s hush-money case is only part of the legal and political drama playing out in a very busy election year.

If you want to know more about the presidential race, the latest episode of Americast is all about Robert F. Kennedy Junior.

The nephew of the 35th President is looking to take on Biden and Trump as an independent. It’s unlikely he’ll win - but his high polling numbers are worrying both of the main parties, who fear that his diverse, bi-partisan policies could steal voters.

Sarah, Anthony and Marianna convene to find out who he is, why he’s running, and if he lives up to his reputation as one of America’s most famous conspiracy theorists.

You can listen to Americast here.

With court adjourned for the day, we have two new sketches to share with you.

The first shows former Director of Oval Office Operations Madeleine Westerhout as she holds a tissue to her eye. She cried as she testified about why she was forced to resign.

The second sketch shows HarperCollins Vice President Tracey Menzies, who testified about one of Trump's books.

Image source, Reuters/Jane Rosenberg

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Trump walks out of the courtroom after his lawyer lost what was likely a long-shot motion for a mistrial.

He speaks with media in the hallway outside the courtroom, clearly fuming about the judge's rulings on the gag order and a motion for a mistrial.

He says the judge's ruling is a "disgrace" and calls Justice Merchan "corrupt".

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Justice Merchan has denied Trump’s legal team's motion for a mistrial.

He tells the court he reviewed his pre-trial rulings to make sure nobody had violated them, and he found neither side had.

Merchan said when Todd Blanche denied Stormy Daniels’ story in opening statements, it made it necessary for prosecutors to introduce corroborating evidence from Daniels so the jury could weigh who was telling the truth.

He also notes that he granted several objections from Trump’s lawyer, Susan Necheles, during the prosecutor's questioning of Daniels.

But he dinged the defence for not objecting to other questions, including about whether the two used a condom during the alleged encounter.

“I wish those questions hadn’t been asked, I wish those answers hadn’t been given,” he said.

He disagrees with Blanche that Daniels’ story had changed, but that people may have gone into more detail now than they had in the past.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Joshua Steinglass said prosecutors actually left out some of the details of Stormy Daniels' alleged sexual encounter with Donald Trump to save him from "embarrassment".

"There are other details I don't want put on the record," he said.

He might be referring to some of the the details Daniels shared in her memoir.

Donald Trump has always denied any sexual encounter with Stormy Daniels.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Joshua Steinglass tells the court it has always been the prosecutors' contention that the full details of the alleged two-hour sexual encounter are essential to corroborating Stormy Daniels' story.

He also says that prosecutors believe the details confirm her claim she had sex with Trump, which would increase the alleged motivation on his part to silence her.

Notably, it is Steinglass, not Susan Hoffinger, who is arguing for the prosecution.

Hoffinger's questioning is what opened the door to the mistrial motion, and even Justice Merchan told her that some of Daniels' testimony would have been "better left unsaid".

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Todd Blanche, before he wraps up, says that some of Daniels' testimony was "a dog whistle for rape”.

Joshua Steinglass with the Manhattan district attorney's office pushes back on the claim that Daniels changed her story.

He says that Daniels' account had been shared in multiple interviews, and the evidence was shared with the defence team.

As Steinglass argues against the mistrial motion, Donald Trump angrily scribbles a note on a piece of paper and flings it towards Todd Blanche, who is seated to his right.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Image source, Getty Images

Todd Blanche is calling for a mistrial. It's the second time this week Trump's team has argued for this.

He is saying that some of the details Stormy Daniels shared - including her allegation that she spanked Trump with a magazine when they met for dinner - are extremely prejudicial.

"This isn't a case about sex," he says. Many details of the alleged sexual encounter came out during the prosecution's direct questioning.

Blanche also claims Daniels has changed her story, and is saying that Daniels is now implying that there was an absence of consent.

(Daniels has maintained that the alleged encounter was consensual, and did so in court.)

Blanche goes on to argue the account Daniels gave about her alleged sexual encounter with Trump had nothing to do with the case at hand.

He says it did not tie into other evidence, such as the non-disclosure agreements that sparked the payment at the centre of this case.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Justice Merchan denies the motion to modify Donald Trump's gag order.

His concern is not just about protecting Stormy Daniels or a witness who has testified already - his concern is protecting the integrity of the case as a whole.

“The reason why the gag order is in place to begin with is precisely because of the nature of these attacks, the vitriol," Merchan says.

“Your client's track record speaks for itself, I can't take your word for it."

He notes there are concerns that some witnesses - namely, Michael Cohen - have used the gag order as a "sword instead of a shield".

But for now he denies the request from Trump's lawyers.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Prosecutor Christopher Conroy argues Trump's gag order is in place to protect the witnesses and potential witnesses.

"I had a conversation with a witness last night, a custodial witness... who was concerned about safety," he said. Conroy tells the court that this was not the only witness with concerns.

He said the proceedings "shouldn't expose them to this defendant's barrage of threats".

Modifying the gag order would signal to future witnesses that they might not be safe, he argues.

"Let's not pretend he wants to engage in high-minded discourse," Conroy says about Trump's request to be able to talk about Daniels.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Todd Blanche claims that Daniels told a different story about their alleged sexual encounter in court than she has in the past, and that Trump is going to be asked about it constantly.

Blanche says that Daniels has testified and is no longer a witness, so Trump should be allowed to respond.

He says that voters will be deprived of Trump's perspective.

Prosecutor Christopher Conroy pushes back.

"It seems the other side lives in almost an alternate reality," he says.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Justice Merchan is now hearing motions from Trump's lawyer Todd Blanche.

The first issue has already been dealt with: we learn that prosecutors do not plan to call Karen McDougal, the Playboy model who claimed Trump had a months-long affair with her - which Trump denies.

McDougal's name has come up frequently in other witness testimony because she was also at the centre of a catch-and-kill arrangement at the National Enquirer tabloid magazine.

The second issue is more serious: Blanche wants Trump to be allowed to respond to the testimony that Stormy Daniels gave, but his gag-order means he cannot talk about witnesses.

“We ask that President Trump be allowed to respond publicly to what happened in court the last day and a half," Blanche says.

We have some new court sketches to share from artist Jane Rosenberg.

They show two of the witnesses we have heard from today, Stormy Daniels and Rebecca Manochio.

Image source, Reuters/Jane Rosenberg

Image source, Reuters/Jane Rosenberg

Trump has left the courtroom for the 10 minute break, holding what appears to be a stack of papers or a legal pad.

He was seen pumping his fist as he left.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Trump's lawyer Susan Necheles started to cross-examine Madeline Westerhout, but it only lasted a few minutes before the judge called it a day for testimony.

A short break has been called, and the jury will leave.

But we're not quite done yet; the judge will hear motions from Trump's lawyers before we adjourn for the day.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

A few minutes ago, we saw another email between Madeleine Westerhout and Rhona Graff.

Trump wanted a photo of his mother framed, and Westerhout emailed Rhona in New York to ask about it.

Trump had an account with the luxury jeweller Tiffany & Co,, the email states, and Westerhout testifies that Trump said he wanted a frame from Tiffany's.

“Please note that the frames are on the pricey side,” Rhona wrote in the email - more than $600 even with a company discount.

“Does DJT want to spend that much?” Rhona asked, referring to Trump.

While this might seem frivolous, prosecutors have pushed a narrative that Trump was actually quite tight with his money, and that his financial habits were in contrast to the $420,000 Cohen was ultimately reimbursed for the $130,000 hush money payment to Stormy Daniels.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

Westerhout is a remarkably similar witness to her former Oval Office deskmate, Hope Hicks.

Both are beautiful, poised on the stand, and spoke of Donald Trump in flattering terms - even if they may be offering testimony that the prosecution could use.

Both also grew emotional on the stand, though for different reasons.

Hicks started to cry and had to leave the witness stand; we don't know for sure why this occurred, but she had just offered testimony that could have damaged Trump.

Westerhout, on the other hand, cried as she recalled a career mistake she made that led to her leaving the White House.

It is clear from her testimony that she respected Trump during her time there.

Kayla Epstein
Reporting from court

When Westerhout began to cry, Justice Merchan handed her a tissue.

I can only see Donald Trump in profile, but he leaned over to one of his lawyers and then turned back to face his former aide.

He seemed to give a small, nearly imperceptible shake of his head.

Westerhout is still composing herself and sniffling as prosecutors display her book, Off the Record, that recounts her experience of leaving the White House.

"It was important to share with the American people, the man that I got to know," she said through tears. "I don’t think he was treated fairly."