Where Stormy Daniels' testimony leaves the Trump trial

Delving into salacious details of an alleged intersexual brushwood successful a Nevada edifice suite with Donald Trump, big movie prima Stormy Daniels provided Manhattan prosecutors with adjuvant - but sometimes irrelevant - context.

Mr Trump has pleaded not blameworthy to transgression charges of falsifying concern records successful narration to a hush-money outgo made to Ms Daniels. He besides denies having enactment with her.

One of the astir eagerly awaited witnesses of the trial, her quality successful the Manhattan courthouse Tuesday and Thursday proved dramatic.

But whether her astatine times long-winded grounds importantly boosted prosecutors' lawsuit is unclear.

"She was a precise sensational witness. There was a batch of grounds that came retired that was wholly irrelevant," said erstwhile Manhattan authoritative Diana Florence.

"But astatine the extremity of the day, she adds discourse to the story."

Taking the basal successful a humble look with her hairsbreadth clipped back, Ms Daniels got disconnected to a rocky commencement Tuesday.

Her meandering responses to prosecutors prompted disapproval from Justice Juan Merchan, who aboriginal told the tribunal that immoderate of it "would person been amended near unsaid".

Mr Trump, meanwhile, sat hunched implicit successful his spot - his lad Eric conscionable 2 rows down him - arsenic Ms Daniels aired lurid details astir their alleged meeting.

The details included Mr Trump greeting her successful silk pyjamas astatine his edifice suite, and the information that helium did not deterioration a condom erstwhile they had sex.

The grounds prompted Mr Trump's lawyers to lodge 2 mistrial requests, which Justice Merchan denied. The justice had asked prosecutors to tread cautiously erstwhile probing the specifics of the alleged intersexual encounter.

But ultimately, Ms Florence said, the time successful tribunal amounted to a "side show" that had small to bash with the bosom of the case: whether Mr Trump broke the instrumentality by classifying reimbursements for Ms Daniels' hush-money outgo arsenic "legal expenses".

BBC News reporters are successful the Manhattan courtroom covering the historical archetypal transgression proceedings of a erstwhile US president. You'll find their updates and investigation connected the BBC quality website and app, and crossed TV, vigor and podcasts.

Prosecutors allege helium tried to screen up the hush-money outgo to prevention his 2016 statesmanlike predetermination bid.

"It doesn't truly substance whether they had intercourse oregon not," Ms Florence said, adding that Ms Daniels' grounds "went connected excessively long."

Still, the worldly made for a tense mates of days successful court, including connected Thursday, arsenic a defiant Ms Daniels went head-to-head with a forceful Trump attorney, Susan Necheles.

Ms Necheles tried to harm Ms Daniels' credibility by accusing her of making up the alleged intersexual encounter.

At 1 point, Ms Necheles claimed Ms Daniels had made up the communicative conscionable similar the screenplays she wrote for the big films she starred in.

"The enactment successful those films was precise overmuch real, conscionable similar what happened to maine successful that [hotel] room," a frustrated Ms Daniels responded.

Her effect was a "mic drop", said erstwhile Manhattan authoritative Jeremy Saland.

"She deed backmost hard," helium said.

At different point, Ms Necheles accused Ms Daniels of lying astir not really eating meal astatine Mr Trump's edifice suite connected the nighttime of the alleged intersexual encounter.

"Your words don't mean what you say, bash they?" she told Ms Daniels.

Ms Daniels stuck to the wide facts of her story.

"You're trying to instrumentality maine into saying thing that's not wholly true," she told Ms Necheles aboriginal on.

Ms Necheles kept swinging, moving to represent Ms Daniels arsenic a money-hungry pistillate who fabricated details.

The strategy whitethorn person been excessively assertive for a witnesser who had an "air of truthfulness", Mr Saland said.

"She came crossed arsenic precise strong, and I deliberation the defence did a mediocre occupation … successful truly trying to dehumanise her," helium said.

With their cross-examination, Mr Trump's ineligible squad besides whitethorn person inadvertently helped the prosecution's case, experts said.

While grilling Ms Daniels, the defence demonstrated precisely wherefore Mr Trump would person tried to conceal the enactment ungraded earlier the predetermination - to debar relation with a witnesser the defence squad portrayed arsenic ''tawdry,'' Ms Florence said.

"It was a broadside amusement astatine the proceedings - and it would've been a main lawsuit conscionable earlier the election," she said.

Though Ms Daniels appeared much composed during her 2nd time of transverse examination, her grounds astatine times aired bizarre details astir her life.

On 1 occasion, Ms Necheles - to harm Ms. Daniels' credibility - started pressing her for details connected a tv amusement she made astir "talking to ghosts".

Ms Daniels explained that the amusement progressive investigating ghosts astatine her haunted Louisiana home. In the end, though, it was conscionable a "giant opossum that was nether the house", she testified.

But the communicative besides veered distant from the concern records that are cardinal to the case.

Still, Mr Saland said, Ms Daniels' candid answers helped acceptable up Mr Trump's information for the reimbursement of the hush wealth - and his alleged amerciable screen up.

"It was invaluable successful the consciousness that it builds the communicative and helps america recognize however we got here," Mr Saland said.

"It's wherefore Trump paid. She's the conveyance of the story, but she's not the story."

For Ms Daniels, though, coming guardant years agone astir with the alleged intersexual brushwood has brought small bully to her life, she told the tribunal Thursday.

Asked by prosecutors whether telling her communicative was a nett antagonistic oregon nett positive, she replied successful a brushed voice: "Negative".