12 jurors chosen as real action nd in Trump’s trial edges closer
Hopes of having a jury in place this week for Donald Trump’s hush money trial suffered a blow early yesterday when two already selected jurors were dismissed, however a late flurry of selections saw the 12-person jury finally selected.
But Judge Juan Mechan still faces the prospect of selecting five alternates required before the trial proper can begin, one was selected last night. The halting progress underscoring the difficulties in finding a panel of New Yorkers for the firstever criminal trial of a former president.
In the morning, one juror was excusedafterexpressingdoubt over her ability to be fair and impartial. The other was dismissedafterprosecutorsraised questions about the accuracy of his answers during the selection process.
It reduced to five the number of jurors who have been seated, but a late flurry of selections means the 12-person jury is complete.
Lawyers yesterday grilled hundreds of potential jurors for hours, asking questions on everything from their hobbies and their social media posts to their opinion of the presumptive Republican nominee in this year’s closely contested presidential race.
More than half the members of a second group of 96 prospective jurors brought into the courtroomweredismissedyesterday, most after saying they doubted their ability to be fair and impartial.
The first juror to be excused, an oncology nurse selected on Tuesday, told the court she had become concerned about her ability to be impartial. Judge Merchansaidthewoman“conveyed that after sleeping on it overnight she had concerns about her ability to be fair and impartial in this case”.
And though jurors’ names are being kept confidential, the woman told the judge she had doubts.
A second seated juror, an IT professional, was dismissed after prosecutors raised concerns that he may not have been honest in answering a jury selection question by saying that he had never been accusedorconvictedofacrime.
The trial centres on a payment that Trump’s lawyer and personal fixer, Michael Cohen, made shortly before the 2016 election to pornography actor Stormy Daniels, to prevent her claims of a sexual encounter with Trump from becoming public in the race’s final days.
Prosecutors say Trump obscured the true nature of the payments in internal records whenhiscompanyreimbursed Mr Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2018 and is expectedtobeastarwitnessfor the prosecution.
Trump has denied having a sexual encounter with Ms Daniels, and his lawyers argue that the payments to Mr Cohen were legitimate legal expenses. Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
He could get up to four years in prison if convicted, though it is not clear that the judge would opt to put him behind bars. Trump would almost certainly appeal any conviction.
It is one of four criminal prosecutions involving Trump as he vies to reclaim the White House, but it is possible that it will be the sole case to reach trial before November’s presidential election
She had concerns about her ability to be fair and impartial in this case Judge Juan Merchan