evidence: From an outside perspective, it appears that DANY has built a robust case along a narrowly-tailored theory of prosecution: falsifying business records to conceal criminal conduct that hid damaging information during the 2016 presidential campaign. Despite the historical significance of being the first indictment of a former president, the core allegations of falsifying business records are routine. As we detail below, the Manhattan DA has brought dozens of these cases over the years, including for covert payments made to benefit political campaigns. Thus, while having an ex-president as the defendant may be novel, prosecuting this type of conduct is not. [...] - Evidence regarding the "catch and kill" scheme, including payments made to Daniels, and two others. They are Dino Sajudin, the doorman who allegedly tried to sell a now debunked story about Trump fathering a child out of wedlock, and Karen McDougal, the former Playboy model who allegedly sold her story of an affair with Trump. DANY also alleges that these acts, as well as AMI’s publication of negative stories about Trump’s opponents, should be considered part of the same overall scheme and are therefore admissible. [...] - In late 2015, Pecker heard that Trump’s former doorman at Trump Tower was selling a negative story about Trump, and Pecker directed AMI to purchase the rights to the story in order to suppress it. AMI paid the doorman $30,000, and although they learned the story was not true, Cohen instructed Pecker not to release the doorman from the deal until after the election.