From 2h ago
Hush money trial to hear opening statements
Chris Michael
Well, after all the appeals and bombast and tears, it’s finally here: opening statements in the first criminal trial of a US president.
Jury selection in the case of the People of the State of New York versus Donald Trump wrapped up last week, though not without some difficulty. Hundreds of prospective jurors were dismissed, several cried, and a couple of them quit after they were chosen.
But at last judge Juan Merchan has landed on 18 people (12 jurors and six alternates) living in Manhattan who say they don’t have strong enough opinions about Donald Trump to bias them against the facts.
And facts there are aplenty. Prosecutors accuse Trump of falsifying business records in order to cover up an attempt to influence the 2016 election. Specifically, they say he tried right before that election – at a time when was already facing serious heat because of the Access Hollywood tape, in which he bragged he could sexually assault women because he was famous – to buy the silence of a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who says she had an affair with him 10 years before.
Prosecutors say Trump feared yet another sex scandal could sink his election prospects, so he paid her to keep silent about the affair, his coercive behavior in the bedroom, and of course his “toadstool”.
It’s going to be edifying. We’re at the courthouse. Stay with us.
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Likely to come first is what’s known as a “Sandoval” decision. Here, the judge rules in advance about what prosecutors are allowed to ask Trump if he takes the stand – helping Trump decide whether to do so. (He has said he would, but signs indicate he may not.)
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In this case, prosecutors have asked the judge for several things, such as permission to ask Trump about the two civil fraud trials he just lost: one for defaming E Jean Carroll after she accused him of raping her, which a judge ruled was “substantially true”, and the other for fradulently inflating the value of his properties.
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They also want to grill him, among other matters, about criticism from a judge in a different case that Trump didn’t seem to be a truthful witness. Colour us shocked.
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Well, after all the appeals and bombast and tears, it’s finally here: opening statements in the first criminal trial of a US president.
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Jury selection in the case of the People of the State of New York versus Donald Trump wrapped up last week, though not without some difficulty. Hundreds of prospective jurors were dismissed, several cried, and a couple of them quit after they were chosen.
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But at last judge Juan Merchan has landed on 18 people (12 jurors and six alternates) living in Manhattan who say they don’t have strong enough opinions about Donald Trump to bias them against the facts.
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And facts there are aplenty. Prosecutors accuse Trump of falsifying business records in order to cover up an attempt to influence the 2016 election. Specifically, they say he tried right before that election – at a time when was already facing serious heat because of the Access Hollywood tape, in which he bragged he could sexually assault women because he was famous – to buy the silence of a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who says she had an affair with him 10 years before.
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Prosecutors say Trump feared yet another sex scandal could sink his election prospects, so he paid her to keep silent about the affair, his coercive behavior in the bedroom, and of course his “toadstool”.
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It’s going to be edifying. We’re at the courthouse. Stay with us.
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Key events
Chris Michael
Next, probably, are opening statements.
The prosecution will likely try to frame the trial not as a sex scandal, but as another case of Trump’s attempts to interfere with elections. After all, that’s what they say elevates this case to a felony: the prosecution alleges that Trump falsified business records (normally a misdemeanour) in order to violate US campaign finance law (a federal crime).
Politico also reports that people close to the case say the prosecution will be working hard to rehabilitate the credibility of Michael Cohen – Trump’s former fixer, who already served time for his role in the hush-money payments, but who has also previously been found guilty of lying in court. Luckily for them, there is a fair amount of evidence to corroborate Cohen’s central claim: that he paid Stormy Daniels at Trump’s behest.
The defense, for their part, will be trying to downplay the events as a sordid but forgivable case of trying to hide an affair, which doesn’t rise to the level of a federal crime.
Trump himself, of course, will be pitching the trial every day in the courthouse corridors as a “Biden-inspired witch hunt” – evidence that he sees two juries: the 12 people in the courthouse and the 160 million-plus American voters, who, let’s remember, could still elect him even if he’s convicted.
What’s happening today?
Chris Michael
Likely to come first is what’s known as a “Sandoval” decision. Here, the judge rules in advance about what prosecutors are allowed to ask Trump if he takes the stand – helping Trump decide whether to do so. (He has said he would, but signs indicate he may not.)
In this case, prosecutors have asked the judge for several things, such as permission to ask Trump about the two civil fraud trials he just lost: one for defaming E Jean Carroll after she accused him of raping her, which a judge ruled was “substantially true”, and the other for fradulently inflating the value of his properties.
They also want to grill him, among other matters, about criticism from a judge in a different case that Trump didn’t seem to be a truthful witness. Colour us shocked.
Chris Michael
So: who are those jurors?
It’s understandable that you’d be interested. So are we. And there is some limited information about them here:
But many media outlets seem determined to doxx (or reveal the identity and personal information, like addresses) of the jurors.
This would likely expose them to threats and abuse from Trump’s legions of fans, even without him telling them to.
So curiosity is normal. But given Merchan has unusually decided not to sequester the jury (often standard procedure in such high-profile trials), perhaps it’s best to give these people a little privacy, too.
Hush money trial to hear opening statements
Chris Michael
Well, after all the appeals and bombast and tears, it’s finally here: opening statements in the first criminal trial of a US president.
Jury selection in the case of the People of the State of New York versus Donald Trump wrapped up last week, though not without some difficulty. Hundreds of prospective jurors were dismissed, several cried, and a couple of them quit after they were chosen.
But at last judge Juan Merchan has landed on 18 people (12 jurors and six alternates) living in Manhattan who say they don’t have strong enough opinions about Donald Trump to bias them against the facts.
And facts there are aplenty. Prosecutors accuse Trump of falsifying business records in order to cover up an attempt to influence the 2016 election. Specifically, they say he tried right before that election – at a time when was already facing serious heat because of the Access Hollywood tape, in which he bragged he could sexually assault women because he was famous – to buy the silence of a porn star, Stormy Daniels, who says she had an affair with him 10 years before.
Prosecutors say Trump feared yet another sex scandal could sink his election prospects, so he paid her to keep silent about the affair, his coercive behavior in the bedroom, and of course his “toadstool”.
It’s going to be edifying. We’re at the courthouse. Stay with us.