A FIRST IN DON CASE
Day 1 in court history
Donald Trump is set to appear in Manhattan court Monday as jury selection kicks off in what amounts to a historic moment — the first-ever criminal trial of a former US president.
The real-estate mogul is due in Manhattan Supreme Court around 9:30 a.m. as potential jurors are set to get grilled about whether they can fairly judge the case — in which Trump is accused of fudging business records to cover up a hushmoney payment to porn star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election.
Trump, 77, has claimed he cannot get a fair trial in Democrat-leaning Manhattan, which he lost in landslides in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
But out of a borough of 1.6 million people, the court only needs 12 vetted jurors and six alternates for opening statements to begin.
Still, court officials expect the process to take a while.
Lawyers for both sides have unlimited chances to boot jurors for “cause” and around 10 chances to do so with no questions asked.
But both sides have agreed not to remove any juror based purely on their political party, which is in line with how previous politically charged cases have been handled.
They will also be barred from removing jurors based on their race, gender, religion or national origin.
Prospective panelists are expected to read aloud their answers to a long list of questions — including whether they are part of extremist groups such as QAnon or Antifa or “have any strong opinions or firmly held beliefs” about Trump that would stop them from judging the case based on evidence.
Lawyers for both Trump and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office can’t ask jurors about their party affiliation. But Justice Juan Merchan has noted that the “answer to that question may easily be gleaned” from other answers — including about what news outlets they utilize.
Potential jurors’ names will be kept anonymous, though lawyers and consultants for each side will have access to them. The consultants are expected to comb through the online presences of each possible juror, too, to make sure they are not hiding any bias in a bid to get on what will be one of the most closely watched trials in US history.