By JENNIFER PELTZ, MICHAEL R. SISAK, JAKE OFFENHARTZ and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER (Associated Press)
NEW YORK (AP) — Attorneys worked on Friday to complete the group of 12 jurors and six alternates who will listen to Donald Trump's hush money trial, while the former president criticized a gag order that has led to prosecutors trying to hold him in contempt of court.
After a jury of 12 New Yorkers was seated Thursday, lawyers focused on selecting alternates who can promise to fairly judge the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Thursday’s events showed how unpredictable the jury selection process can be in such a high-profile case, with two jurors who had been seated a day earlier being removed from the panel.
The judge has indicated that opening statements might start as soon as Monday, before prosecutors lay out their case accusing Trump of trying to cover up negative stories that he was afraid would harm his 2016 presidential campaign.
The trial will bring Trump to a Manhattan courtroom for weeks, requiring him to balance his dual role as a defendant in a criminal case and a political candidate during his highly competitive race against President Joe Biden. The trial will include sensational and unflattering testimony that his opponent will likely use to try to portray Trump as unsuitable to return as president.
Trump insists he did nothing wrong and has portrayed himself as the target of a justice system driven by political motives aimed at keeping him out of the White House.
The judge and attorneys have spent days questioning New Yorkers about their opinions on Trump, and many have been dismissed for saying they couldn’t be fair. Those chosen to hear the case include a sales professional, a software engineer, a security engineer, an English teacher, a speech therapist, multiple lawyers, an investment banker and a retired wealth manager.
As more potential jurors were interviewed on Friday, Trump seemed to lean over at the defense table, writing on some papers and passing notes with one of his lawyers.
He perked up occasionally and looked at the jury box, including when one potential juror mentioned that he had volunteered in a “get out the vote” effort for Hillary Clinton’s campaign.
Another potential juror got Trump's attention by saying that he follows the White House Instagram account, including when Trump was in office. Trump smiled at a man who was asked if he was married and joked that he had been trying to find a wife in his spare time, but “it’s not working.”
One potential juror was released from duty after thinking and saying that she didn’t believe she could be impartial. Another person told the judge she had no strong feelings about Trump and didn’t think anything would sway her decision in the case.
Upon arriving at the courthouse on Friday, Trump complained about the gag order from the judge that limits what he can publicly say about witnesses. He has criticized the judge, prosecutors and likely witnesses on social media, leading the district attorney’s office to seek penalties for possible violations of a restriction on speaking publicly. The judge plans to have a hearing next week about prosecutors’ request to punish Trump for disobeying the court.
Trump said, “The restriction on speaking publicly needs to be lifted. People should be able to talk about me, but I'm not allowed to.”
Judge Juan M. Merchan is also expected to have a hearing on Friday to consider a request from prosecutors to bring up Trump’s previous legal issues if he testifies in the hush money case. Manhattan prosecutors want to question Trump about his recent civil fraud trial that led to a $454 million judgment after a judge found that Trump had been dishonest about his wealth for many years. He is appealing that decision. $454 million judgment after a judge found Trump had lied about his wealth for years. He is appealing that verdict.
The trial is focused on a $130,000 payment that Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and personal fixer, made to porn actor Stormy Daniels to keep her claims of a sexual encounter with Trump secret in the final days of the 2016 race.
Prosecutors say Trump concealed the true nature of the payments in internal records when his company reimbursed Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2018 and is expected to be a key witness for the prosecution.
Trump has denied having a sexual encounter with Daniels, and his lawyers argue that the payments to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses.
Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He could face up to four years in prison if found guilty, though it’s uncertain whether the judge would choose to imprison him. Trump would almost certainly challenge any conviction.
Trump is implicated in four criminal cases, but it’s not clear that any others will go to trial before the November election. Legal challenges and appeals have caused delays in the other three cases, which accuse Trump of trying to overturn the 2020 election results and with illegally hoarding classified documents.
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Richer reported from Washington.
