NEW YORK — Donald Trump was held in criminal contempt for violating a gag order prohibiting him from commenting on participants in his hush-money case and fined $9,000 as his Manhattan trial entered its third week on Tuesday.

State Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan made the decision moments after taking the bench and after telling Trump he’d let him attend his son Barron’s high school graduation.

In an accompanying written order, the judge said the nine offending Truth Social posts, which referred to the jury and anticipated witnesses Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels, had to be taken down by 2:15 p.m. and that further violations could land Trump behind bars.

The judge didn’t buy Trump’s argument that sharing things others had said didn’t violate the gag order.

“There can be no doubt whatsoever that Defendant’s intent and purpose when reposting is to communicate to his audience that he endorses and adopts the posted statement as his own,” Merchan wrote.

“Defendant is hereby warned that the court will not tolerate continued willful violations of its lawful orders and that if necessary and appropriate under the circumstances, it will impose an incarceratory punishment.”

The decision came in response to prosecutors’ request to punish Trump for what they said were more than a dozen violations of a gag order prohibiting him from commenting on trial participants and additional monetary sanctions. Since that request, they said he’s violated it another four times, which Merchan will consider at a hearing on Thursday.

Trump walked into court just before 9:30 a.m. wearing his signature red tie and navy blue suit. He was flanked by his legal team and son Eric Trump, who appeared to be the first member of his family to attend the trial.

By 8 a.m., around two dozen pro-Trump demonstrators had gathered in Collect Pond Park across the street from the courthouse, bearing “Make America Great Again” flags emblazoned with the former president’s face and one reading “Finish the wall.”

“Our young Republican demographic support is surging, in polls, CNN and Siena, and the Republicans across the state as well. So I think it’s important for people to come out and mobilize and support Trump and support all the Republicans so that we do well this November,” Bobby Walker, vice chair of the New York State Young Republicans, told the Daily News.

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