Trump trial: Judge rebukes Michael Cohen ahead of expected testimony Monday

Defense attorney Susan Necheles conducted a short cross-examination of Trump Organization Rebecca Manochio about her time at the Trump Organization.

"Is it a nice place to work?" Necheles asked.

"Yes," Manochio said.

"You didn't really interact with President Trump?" Necheles asked.

"No," Manochio replied.

During her cross examination, Manochio also testified that then-CFO Allen Weisselberg rarely communicated with Trump once he took office.

"President Trump and Allen Weisselberg did not speak at all?" Susan Necheles asked.

"Correct," Manochio responded.

Necheles attempted to highlight that the checks made out to Michael Cohen, that were sent to Trump for his signature, were sent to Trump's bodyguard in Washington because they were for "personal bills" that needed to be quickly paid, and the White House delayed Trump's personal mail.

"These were all personal bills that had to be paid promptly?" Necheles asked.

"Yes," Manochio said.

Donald Trump has returned to the courtroom following the lunch break.

Trump surveyed the gallery as he got to the defense counsel table.

Judge Merchan is back on the bench and Trump Organization bookkeeper Rebecca Manochio has taken her seat on the witness stand to resume her testimony.

Trump's defense team, after Judge Juan Merchan dismissed the jury for a lunch break, informed the judge they have a renewed motion for a mistrial plus two additional motions.

In in addition to seeking a mistrial, the defense will asking to preclude Karen McDougal's potential testimony, and seek to modify part of the limited gag order placed on Trump.

Merchan said he will break testimony early at 4 p.m. ET and handle the three motions then.

Before excusing the jury for the lunch break, Merchan announced that the trial is currently on or ahead of schedule.

As questioning of the Trump Organization's bookkeeper continued, Trump, sitting at the defense table, continued to appear to give instructions to his attorneys.

Trump wrote down a note on a yellow legal bad and passed it to attorney Susan Necheles, who read it and then looked up at Trump and nodded in agreement. She then went back to her own notepad and took down a note.

Bookkeeper Rebecca Manochio is testifying as a custodian of records for the Trump Organization, as prosecutors have entered into evidence a series of emails and Fedex records.

The jury sees FedEx invoices for checks Manochio says she sent to Washington for Trump to sign while he was president. They have seen two instances where Manochio mailed checks to the home of Trump's bodyguard, Keith Schiller, instead of directly to the White House.

Schiller also mailed the checks back, according to Manochio.

Asked who directed her to mail the checks to Schiller, Manochio said that either then-CFO Allen Weisselberg or Trump assistant Rhona Graff told her to do so.

By September 2017, Manochio said she began mailing the checks to Trump's then-body man John McEntee, who would later became the director of the White House personnel office and one of Donald Trump's most trusted aides.

"I will need the boss's personal checks mailed to me," McEntee said in an email to Rhona Graff.

"Who is John McEntee?" the prosecutor asked Manochio.
"Couldn't tell you," Manochio said.