The case against Donald Trump: How legal experts are responding

WASHINGTON (TND) — The show of support Tuesday night for former President Donald Trump was matched, in part, with reaction from legal scholars, calling the case against him "weak," "politically motivated" and "unprecedented."

In an interview with The National Desk Wednesday, constitutional and criminal law expert Alan Dershowitz laid out his message to District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

I challenge you to come up with a single case in the history of the New York D.A.'s office in which a person was indicted for failing to disclose on a corporate form the fact he paid hush money in order to cover up an adulterous affair," he said.

The alleged hush money payments and falsifying documents though will likely be easy to prove legal, experts say.

But Richard Pierce, a George Washington University law professor, said it is harder to prove if he did it for the purpose of violating federal election law.

That, of course, is what converts it from a misdemeanor to a felony," Pierce said during an interview with The National Desk on Wednesday.

He and others argue this is where the greatest challenge lies.

It's a particular challenge legally because, of course, that’s not a statute within his jurisdiction," Pierce said.

Some have predicted the case might even get thrown out.

But Bragg insists he has the evidence to prove his case, including documents and testimony connected to an alleged "catch and kill scheme" to suppress negative stories about him in order to "influence the 2016 presidential election" to "benefit [his] electoral prospects."

In a news conference following Tuesday's arraignment, Bragg said, "Why did Donald Trump repeatedly make these false statements? The evidence will show that he did so to cover up crimes relating to the 2016 election."

Some are calling the case to be moved out of Manhattan, including Dershowitz, arguing Bragg simply carried out a promise he made when running for office to "Get Trump."

"Get Trump" is also the title of Dershowitz’s book.

He’s then going to have a jury consisting of people who voted for him on the platform of getting Trump," Dershowitz said. "Is that justice?

These questions of justice now loom large, as the former president navigates a new legal landscape and a presidential campaign.