In an unprecedented event, Donald Trump, the former president, will appear in lower Manhattan on Monday, marking the first time a former president faces trial for criminal charges. Despite numerous last-ditch efforts to prevent the trial, the selection of jurors is set to commence and continue until a panel of 12 New Yorkers and their alternates are chosen, a process that could span over a week.
The Allegations
The trial revolves around allegations of a cover-up of a potential sex scandal that occurred just days before the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors accuse Trump of falsifying business records to conceal the reimbursement of hush money payments intended to influence the election’s outcome. Trump, however, has pleaded not guilty and denied having an affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels.
The Stakes
This case represents a significant challenge for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat. It may be the only one of Trump’s four criminal cases to face a jury before Election Day. Trump will swap the campaign trail for the courtroom, where he is expected to be present four days a week for the next two months. Despite his showmanship, the stakes for Trump are high. He is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. If convicted, Judge Juan Merchan could sentence Trump to probation or a maximum sentence of 1 1/3 to 4 years on each count in state prison. A president has no authority to pardon state crimes.
The Witnesses
The trial will feature witnesses once close to Trump, including his former attorney Michael Cohen, who pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance charges; long-time friend and former CEO of the company that published the National Enquirer, David Pecker, who executed “catch and kill” deals; and campaign confidante Hope Hicks. The jury will also be taken inside the Oval Office, where prosecutors allege then-President Trump signed-off on the cover-up that involved falsifying business records – invoices, ledger entries, and checks – to reimburse Cohen for phony legal services.
The Defense
Trump’s attorneys have kept their defense strategy under wraps, but court filings suggest they plan to question the credibility of Daniels and Cohen, portraying them as liars motivated by grudges and money. His legal team is led by Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, two former federal prosecutors from New York, and Susan Necheles, a veteran criminal defense lawyer with deep experience in New York and before Merchan. Necheles represented Trump’s business at its tax fraud trial in 2022, which resulted in a conviction.
The Backstory
The trial traces back to the final days of the 2016 presidential election when Stormy Daniels was about to go public with allegations that she had sex with Trump in 2006 at a golf tournament in Lake Tahoe. The Access Hollywood tape catching Trump on a hot mic speaking graphically about his proclivity to grope women had just come out, sending panic into his campaign as it sought to limit the impact on female voters, prosecutors allege. Trump’s allies scrambled to pay Daniels hush money to prevent her from speaking out, the indictment alleges.
The Alleged Cover-Up
Prosecutors allege that Trump agreed to reimburse Cohen, who hammered out the details with Allen Weisselberg, the former longtime chief financial officer of the Trump Organization. As part of the alleged scheme, the Trump Organization paid Cohen $420,000 to reimburse him for the payment, some political work, taxes, and a bonus. According to prosecutors, the Trump Organization noted on the checks to Cohen and in their books that the payments were legal expenses pursuant to a retainer agreement.