A New York judge on Thursday ruled that former President Donald Trump’s ‘hush money’ trial would go ahead as scheduled, with jury selection starting March 25.
Rejecting requests from Trump’s legal team to postpone the first criminal trial of a former President, Judge Juan Merchan on Thursday said the trial could last for six weeks, with a possible verdict in May. If convicted, Trump could face up to four years in prison.
Stormy Weather
The case revolves around allegations that Trump — the front-runner in the Republican nominations for the November 5 Presidential elections — paid $130,000 as ‘hush money’ to former porn star Stormy Daniels to stop her from going public about a sexual encounter, and writing off the payments by fudging business records just weeks before the 2016 Presidential election. He is also said to have paid $150,000 to former Playboy model Karen McDougal, and a Trump Tower doorman who claimed he had proof that Trump had a child out of wedlock.
Trump has denied all the charges. “We want delays. Obviously I’m running for election. How can you run for election if you’re sitting in a courthouse in Manhattan all day long?” Trump is said to have told reporters in the courthouse hallway after Thursday’s ruling in New York.
On Friday, Judge Arthur Engoron is expected to release his ruling on Friday on New York state Attorney General Letitia James’ civil suit against Trump and two of his children. Accusing them of overvaluing assets to secure loans and then undervaluing them to minimize taxes, James is seeking $370 million in penalties, and a ban on Trump and his children from working in the city.
Abuse and Lie?
On February 8, a federal judge upheld last month’s jury verdict in a defamation case and ordered Donald Trump to pay $83.3 million to former magazine columnist E. Jean Carroll. The jury had found that Trump sexually abused Carroll in 1996, and then defamed her in 2022 when he denied the allegations and made disparaging remarks against her. Trump’s legal team plans to challenge the ruling in a higher court.
The former President faces three other criminal cases.
Delays Galore
One case in Washington is for plotting to overthrow the 2020 elections. Four people were killed when Trump loyalists stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021. The trial was slated to begin March 4 this year. But on February 2, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan postponed it until the Supreme Court rules over Trump’s assertion that he is immune against prosecution for acts committed while he was President.
Forgery and More
Trump and 18 others also face trial in Georgia for racketeering and other offences, including attempted forgery, impersonating a public official and submit false statements and documents to subvert the presidential election results in several “swing states.” Four of the defendants have already pleaded guilty.
This case too is now held up because a judge is examining the defence claim that an affair between the two lead prosecutors, Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis and Nathan J. Wade, whom she hired to run the case–constitutes a conflict of interest. Noting that Wade has been paid more than $650,000 since he was hired in 2021, and that he spent money on vacations with Fani Willis, Trump’s defence team argued that this created an incentive for Willis to prolong the case.
It’s Classified!
The fourth criminal case involves illegally holding on to and mishandling classified documents after leaving the White House, making false statements and engaging in a conspiracy to obstruct justice. The June 22 indictment included photographs of boxes of classified information found in “a ballroom, a bathroom and shower, an office space, his bedroom and a storage room” at Trump’s Florida home in Mar-a-Lago. Trump is also accused of showing a classified U.S. military attack plan against a country, believed to be Iran, to several people, including a publisher, writer, and two staff members.
The judge has set a pre-trial hearing for May 14, 2024, and the trial for May 20, 2024. But Trump’s lawyers are demanding that it be delayed too, in order to allow Trump to campaign for the Presidential nominations and election.
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