Trump personal attorney 2006-2018; convicted of campaign finance violations and hush-money payments, key prosecution witness at 2024 trial
Background
Michael Dean Cohen served as Donald Trump’s personal attorney and self-described “fixer” from 2006 to 2018. In August 2018, he pleaded guilty to multiple felony counts including campaign finance violations related to hush-money payments to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, tax evasion, and lying to Congress. He was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison. Cohen served as the primary prosecution witness in Donald Trump’s 2024 criminal trial, testifying about the falsification of business records related to the hush-money payments. He had facilitated the $130,000 payment to Daniels in October 2016 through a shell company.
