Manafort’s trial begins in Virginia
ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Paul Manafort’s trial began in earnest Tuesday with opening statements from prosecutors and defense attorneys, the first salvos in a case that could send President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman to prison for the rest of his life.
Earlier in the day, U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III seated a jury of six men and six women. There are also four alternates for the trial in case one of the original jurors isn’t able to complete his or her service.
The Eastern District of Virginia, where the trial is taking place, has a reputation for speedy proceedings, and Tuesday morning was no exception, with Ellis taking just four hours to winnow the 60-member jury pool down to the final selections.
By 9 a.m., when Manafort arrived, the darkpaneled courtroom was already filled to capacity.
During jury questioning, Ellis disclosed the names of the financial institutions with which Manafort allegedly had dealings. The firms had not previously been named in court documents although they had been previously reported. They are the investment banking firm Genesis Capital, Citizens Bank, the Banc of California, and Federal Savings Bank in Chicago.
Before court opened, a small crowd of demonstrators gathered across the street from the federal courthouse in Alexandria. “Was the $18k karaoke machine worth it?” one protester’s sign read, referring to one of Manafort’s extravagant purchases.
“Trump wouldn’t spend one second in prison for you!” another sign said.
Manafort, who guided Trump’s campaign through the tumultuous Republican National Convention two years ago, faces 18 charges of tax evasion, bank fraud and conspiracy at the federal courthouse in Alexandria, across the Potomac River from the nation’s capital. He has pleaded not guilty to each of the charges.