Prosecutors Want Martin Shkreli to Shut Up

Martin Shkreli is "making a spectacle of himself" and his securities fraud trial and he needs to be told to be quiet, prosecutors say. Prosecutors have asked a judge for a gag order banning the "Pharma Bro" from talking about the case publicly and discussing it on social media, NBC News reports. In their court filing, federal prosecutors in New York cited an incident Friday in which Shkreli visited a viewing room at the courthouse and discussed evidence and witnesses with journalists, the Wall Street Journal reports. Prosecutors also accused Shkreli, who was banned from Twitter for harassing a female journalist, of operating the @BLMBro account, which has been tweeting about the case.

In their motion, prosecutors argued that Shkreli had "embarked on a campaign of disruption" that has made it difficult to select a jury and could "render a fair trial impossible." Shkreli's attorney, Benjamin Brafman, asked the judge to reject the request because his client has a constitutional right to speak freely, Reuters reports. Shkreli, Brafman said, is a "young man with a demonstrated history of significant anxiety" and is in a "clearly frail emotional state." He said Shkreli is trying to defend himself against what he sees as "one-sided" coverage of the trial, which resumes Wednesday. (In his opening statement, Brafman cited Lady Gaga twice.)