How Trump violated his gag order in New York. And how he didn’t.

Judge Juan Merchan started the twelfth day of the criminal trial against Donald Trump by threatening to send the former president to prison, while emphasizing that he actually does not want that. If Trump continues to violate the court-ordered gag order, Merchan said, he would have no other choice.

Merchan ruled Monday morning that Trump had violated the silence order for the 10th time — but said three other violations alleged by prosecutors didn’t quite cross the line. The joke bans Trump from commenting on witnesses, jurors and prosecutors in the hush money counterfeiting trial, as well as on family members of the judge or Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.