A New York judge questioned more prospective jurors on Tuesday, looking for those who say they can fairly try the criminal case against Donald Trump in the former U.S. president’s first trial.
Trump was accused of conspiring to conceal the hush money to cover up the alleged extramarital affair before he successfully ran for the White House in 2016.
But when New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan brought 96 prospective jurors into the courtroom on Monday, the first day of the trial, more than 50 of them—an unusually large number—raised their hands and said they couldn’t be fair. , and was immediately fired.
Even before arriving for the second day of the trial, Trump complained about Merchin on the and hate-mongering. He was rough with my attorneys and legal team.”
“I want to speak, or at least be able to respond,” Trump said. “Election interference! Rigged, unconstitutional trial! Lift the gag order!!!”
The views expressed by the first batch of potential jurors may not be surprising. Potential jurors are being drawn in the 2020 election in Manhattan, New York City, where Democratic President Joe Biden defeated Republican Trump by an 85% to 15% margin. They are randomly selected from the registration list. voter.
Trump, who lived a celebrity life in the city and ran his own real estate group before entering politics in 2015, has formed a 12-member and six-member A jury of alternate members could take several days. Only 10 potential jurors were questioned Monday.
Trump has frequently attacked Murchin’s ruling in the case. He complained Monday that the judge did not immediately agree to adjourn the case on May 17 so that he could attend his son Barron’s high school graduation in Florida.
Mochan asked New Yorkers on the jury Monday what news outlets they read or heard about the day’s news, their marital status, whether they have children and where they work.
Merchin also has hundreds of prospective jurors waiting to be examined at the courthouse. The judge laid out 42 questions that Trump’s lawyers and prosecutors could eventually ask prospective jurors whether they had attended Trump’s political rallies or opposed him, or whether they were among those at issue who opposed federal actions. group.
But jurors will not be asked whether they voted for or against Trump’s 2016 and 2020 campaigns.
The trial is unlike any in U.S. history, with Trump the first former U.S. chief executive to face criminal charges and the threat of jail time if convicted.
The Republican presidential candidate in November’s election was watching the proceedings from the dock, with his lawyer nearby. During the Monday afternoon session, he seemed to doze off at times and then become alert again.
Ultimately, he could go to court to defend himself, depending on how he and his lawyers view prosecutors’ evidence.
With Trump required to appear in court, the case will almost certainly keep the 77-year-old candidate away from the campaign trail for an extended period of time.
Charge description
Trump is accused of hiding $130,000 in hush money from porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election to prevent her from speaking out about a one-night tryst with him a decade ago at a celebrity golf tournament. statement. Trump’s wife Melania gave birth to Barron, now 18, more than four months later.
In a second example, the indictment says former Playboy Playmate of the Year Karen McDougal said she had a months-long affair with Trump, and a tabloid publisher told She paid $150,000 to buy the rights to her story and then, at Trump’s urging, killed the article.
Trump denies both incidents and all 34 charges he faces in the New York case, including that he directed one-time political fixer and convicted perjurer Michael Cohen to make payments to Daniels before he A year after his fees were repaid in 2017, Trump’s business records consistently label Cohen’s monthly stipend as legal expenses.
“I’m paying the lawyers and writing it off as legal fees. That’s what it is,” Trump told reporters when he arrived at the trial the next day.
Tampering with company books would be considered a misdemeanor, but to convict Trump of a more serious felony, prosecutors would have to convince jurors that he committed underlying crimes such as trying to influence by withholding information about the matters involved The results of the 2016 election came from the voters.
It is not illegal to pay hush money, and Trump may claim that the payment was made simply to avoid disclosing a personally damaging moment in his life, rather than to try to influence the 2016 election.
The final jury of 12 must decide unanimously on guilt or innocence. If jurors cannot agree among themselves, a so-called “hung jury” results, leaving prosecutors to decide whether to seek a new trial.
Each charge carries a potential four-year prison sentence, although Trump is sure to appeal any guilty verdict and sentence.
The New York case is one of four unprecedented criminal indictments Trump faces, involving 88 charges, all of which he denies.
Some legal analysts believe the hush-money case is the least significant of the four he faces. But it may be the only case to go to trial before the November election.
Two other indictments — one state and one federal — accuse Trump of illegally trying to overturn his 2020 loss, while a third indictment alleges Trump ended his term as president while illegally bringing hundreds of highly classified national security documents to his Florida oceanfront estate. , then refused investigators’ requests to return them.
No firm trial date has been set for any of the three cases, and all have been delayed by preliminary hearings and legal arguments. Trump sought to delay the start date until after the election. If he wins, he may seek to have the federal charges dismissed. In any case, if he were to take power again, he would not be tried during his presidency.
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