Jury selection is continuing — and could conclude — Friday in former President Donald Trump‘s historic New York criminal trial.
With a full 12-person jury and one alternate juror sworn in Thursday, Judge Juan Merchan has called a pool of 96 potential jurors to his Manhattan courtroom in hope of finding five more alternate jurors for the first trial of a former president, which is expected to last roughly six weeks.
The morning began with the judge calling up the 22 remaining potential jurors from the previous pool to answer questions designed to indicate whether they could be fair and impartial about the divisive real estate mogul and presumptive Republican nominee for president.
The first of those potential jurors was dismissed after she said she didn’t think she could be fair. “I have really, really bad anxiety and people have found out where I am,” she told the judge. A short time later, two other potential jurors were dismissed after each told the judge that upon further reflection, “I don’t think I can be impartial.”
Other potential jurors included a married father who said he listens to a podcast called “Order of Man,” which is described on Apple’s website as discussions about “reclaiming what it means to be a man.” Some past guests of the podcast include people who’ve been outspoken in their support of Trump and were highly critical of the civil fraud case New York Attorney General Letitia James brought against the former president.
Another potential juror was a married fund manager who said he’d done “get-out-the-vote” work for former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Trump’s 2016 presidential opponent. Trump and his attorney Todd Blanche passed notes back and forth while that juror was speaking.
Trump appears most interested in jurors whose answers offer ambiguity around their personal political views. When one prospective juror said they were a Fox News viewer, Trump cocked his head, then quickly conferred with his lawyer, Todd Blanche.
Another potential juror was a woman who became emotional as she disclosed she’d served two years in prison on drug-related charges, but said she could be “fair and impartial.”
During a morning break, Merchan — who’d chided reporters on Thursday for disclosing too much information about potential jurors — said the woman had shared “very personal things about her life” and was “very brave.” “I just wanted to encourage the press to please be kind. Please be kind to this person,” the judge said. He later dismissed her, saying she needed a certificate of release to be qualified for service going forward. “Good luck,” he added.
On his way into court, Trump again complained the case against him is “unfair,” and that the partial gag order preventing him from lashing out at witnesses, prosecutors, court staffers and jurors is not “constitutional.” “Everyone else can say whatever they want about me. They can say anything they want. They can continue to make up lies and everything else. They lie. They’re real scum. But you know what? I’m not allowed to speak,” he told reporters.
Prosecutors this week asked the judge to fine Trump and hold him in contempt for social media posts that they said violate the gag order. A hearing on the matter is scheduled for Tuesday.
If the effort to fill the jury box is successful, opening statements could take place as soon as Monday.
The main panel of 12 is made up of seven men and five women, including two lawyers, a teacher, a retired wealth manager, a product development manager, a security engineer, a software engineer, a speech therapist and a physical therapist. The foreman — the juror who essentially acts as the leader and spokesperson for the panel — is a married man who works in sales and gets his news from The New York Times, MSNBC and Fox News.
The lone alternate selected Thursday is a woman who works as an asset manager.
Also Friday, Merchan is expected to hold what’s known as a Sandoval hearing, a type of hearing designed to let defendants know the scope of questions they could face from prosecutors on cross-examination so they can make informed decisions about whether to take the witness stand in their own defense.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office disclosed in a court filing that it would like to ask Trump about several items, among them the $464 million civil judgment against him and his company for fraud, the total $88 million verdicts and liability findings for sexual abuse and defamation in lawsuits brought by writer E. Jean Carroll and a number of other adverse court rulings over the past few years.
Trump has denied wrongdoing in all the cases and is appealing the fraud judgment and the Carroll verdicts.
Prosecutors said they want to be able to bring those findings up “to impeach the credibility of the defendant” if he takes the witness stand.
Trump said last week he “absolutely” plans to testify, but he is under no obligation to do so.
Trump’s attorneys told Merchan in a letter last month that they will argue the DA’s office should be barred “from asking about these items.”
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records and faces up to four years in prison if he is convicted.
Bragg alleges that Trump falsified records to hide money he was paying his former lawyer Michael Cohen to reimburse him for $130,000 he paid adult film actor Stormy Daniels near the end of the 2016 presidential campaign. Daniels has claimed she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006. Trump has denied that he slept with Daniels, but he has acknowledged repaying Cohen.
The DA’s office also alleges that as part of a scheme to boost Trump, National Enquirer publisher American Media Inc. paid $150,000 to model and actor Karen McDougal, who appeared in Playboy magazine and claimed that she had a nine-month affair with Trump before he was elected president “in exchange for her agreement not to speak out about the alleged sexual relationship,” according to a statement of facts filed by Bragg.
Trump has also denied having a sexual relationship with McDougal.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
Amanda Smith is a dedicated U.S. correspondent with a passion for uncovering the stories that shape the nation. With a background in political science, she provides in-depth analysis and insightful commentary on domestic affairs, ensuring readers are well-informed about the latest developments across the United States.
