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. At the same time, the former president criticized a gag order that has led to prosecutors seeking to hold him in contempt of court.
After a group of 12 New Yorkers was selected on Thursday , attorneys focused on choosing alternates who can promise to fairly judge the presumed Republican presidential nominee. Thursday’s events showed that the jury selection process in such a high-profile case is unpredictable, as two jurors who had been chosen a day earlierwere removed from the panel. The judge has indicated that opening statements could start as soon as Monday, before prosecutors present their case.
accusing Trump of a plan to hide negative stories that he feared would damage his 2016 presidential campaign. The trial will bring Trump to a Manhattan courtroom for several weeks, where he will have to balance his dual role as a defendant and political candidate
amidst his closely contested race against President Joe Biden. The trial will include scandalous and unflattering testimony, which his opponent will likely use to portray Trump as unfit to return as president. Trump claims he did nothing wrong and has portrayed himself as a victim of a politically motivated justice system that is trying to prevent him from returning to the White House. The judge and attorneys have spent days questioning New Yorkers about their opinions of Trump, and many have been dismissed for admitting they couldn’t be impartial. Those selected to hear the case so far 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.
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