Trump Hush Money Trial Live Updates – WABC-TV
WATCH LIVE
Opening statements are set to take place Monday, Judge Merchan says
NEW YORK (WABC) — Opening statements will begin on Monday in Donald Trump's hush money case in New York City, the first criminal trial of a former president.
Trump is due back in court after a full jury of 12 people and six alternates were seated in his criminal case last Friday.
Lawyers spent days last week quizzing dozens of New Yorkers to choose the panel. The jury includes a sales professional, a software engineer, an English teacher and multiple lawyers.
Over the weekend, Trump canceled a outdoor campaign rally he originally planned at the Aero Center Wilmington in North Carolina due to severe weather. The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for the region Saturday evening.
"We want to keep everybody safe. That's the most important thing," he was heard saying in a live phone call blasted out to the crowd gathered at the rally in Wilmington, adding that they will "just do a rain check."
The North Carolina event would have been Trump's first rally since the beginning of his trial, as the former president juggles his criminal case and presidential campaign.
Judge Juan Merchan says opening statements will take place on Monday morning, despite another request by the defense for an emergency stay of trial.
Merchan told Trump's lawyers to stop filing motions to reconsider, telling them "there comes a point where you accept my rulings."
"There's nothing else to clarify. There is nothing else to argue. We are going to have opening statements on Monday. We are starting on Monday," he said.
Leaving court, Trump seemed resigned to opening statements Monday. He blamed Judge Merchan.
"We just had another hearing and the trial starts on Monday, which is long before a lot of people thought," Trump said. "The judge wants this to go as fast as possible. Its for his reasons, not for my reasons."
It came hours after chaos erupted outside the courthouse, when emergency crews responded to a nearby park where a man reportedly set himself on fire. The man, identified by police as 37-year-old Max Azzarello of Florida, died from his injuries over the weekend.
Trump declined to answer questions about the self-immolation incident outside the courtroom.
Instead, the former president focused on his allegations of election interference by his political opponent President Joe Biden.
"This is a giant witch hunt to try and hurt a campaign that's beating the worst president in history," Trump said. "Biden is the worst president in the history of our country."
The hush money case is the first of Trump's four indictments to reach trial.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg alleges that former president Donald Trump fraudulently and repeatedly falsified business records to conceal criminal conduct.
According to Bragg, Trump engaged in a scheme with his then-lawyer Michael Cohen and others to influence the 2016 election by suppressing negative information about Trump, including a $130,000 hush-money payment to suppress information about Trump's alleged sexual encounter with porn actress Stephanie Clifford a.k.a. Stormy Daniels.
After the election and while he was president, Trump authorized repaying Cohen through twelve $35,000 payments, which the Trump Organization characterized as payments for legal services pursuant to its retainer agreement with Cohen.
Those payments – which comprise the 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree – sit at the center of Bragg's criminal case.
Donald Trump's lawyers have argued that Bragg's case is a "deluded fantasy" that relies on the testimony of a convicted felon.
Defense lawyers have not yet clearly articulated a contrasting theory of the case, but recent filings suggest they plan to target the credibility of important witnesses, suggest the case was politically motivated, and argue that Trump did not intend to commit a crime.
While Trump's lawyers recently claimed they do not intend to make an advice-of-counsel defense – arguing Trump was just acting at the direction of his lawyers – they plan to highlight the involvement of lawyers in the scheme to prove Trump lacked the intent to commit crimes.
From the start of jury selection to a verdict, Trump's New York trial could run from six-to-eight weeks.
The schedule is subject to change and could vary based on the flow of the trial, including the need to call additional witnesses to authenticate evidence or rate of objections from the parties.
The trial will only be in session four days a week with a full-day recess on Wednesdays. We also expect that Judge Merchan will take multiple days off in observance of Passover.
A total of 12 jurors and six alternates have been seated as of Friday in Trump's hush money criminal trial. Two previously-selected jurors were let go on Thursday.
Here is what we know about the current 12 jurors:
Juror 1 — a middle-aged salesperson from Ireland — will serve as the case's foreman.
He lives in Harlem and said he normally gets his news from the New York Times, Daily Mail, Fox News and MSNBC. In his spare time, he said he enjoys doing "anything outdoorsy."
He once worked as a waiter but has worked in sales for the last three decades.
When asked if he was aware of Trump's other criminal cases, he responded, "I've heard of some of them."
The original juror 2 — an oncology nurse — was removed on Thursday after telling the court that enough details about her identity were reported in the media that she had friends and family contacting her to ask if she was on the case.
She was replaced as juror 2 with a male who works for an investment bank, has an MBA in finance and disclosed to the court that he read quotes from Trump's "Art of the Deal."
He said he gets his news from X, where he follows an account that reposts Trump's Truth Social posts, Michael Cohen, and an account devoted to Trump's legal and political woes.
"Except for following Michael Cohen on Twitter, I don't follow any anti-Trump organizations," he said.
Asked by ADA Steinglass if he could keep an open mind, he responded, "I'd have to wait to hear everything and see if it's compelling or not."
He lives in Midtown with his wife and enjoys hiking, music, and concerts.
Juror 3 is a corporate attorney who moved to New York from Oregon. He has worked at two major white-shoe law firms in New York.
He said he normally gets his news from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Google. In his spare time, he said he enjoys hiking and running.
When asked about the case, he suggested that he could infer the former president's intent without "reading his mind"; however, he was embarrassed to admit he was not very familiar with all the allegations against the former president.
"I am actually not super familiar with the other charges. I don't really follow the news that closely — a little embarrassing to say."
Previously selected juror 4 — an IT consultant who described Trump as "fascinating" — was also excused on Thursday after prosecutors raised concerns about a legal case potentially involving his wife and his own political activity.
He was replaced Thursday with a security engineer who has lived in New York for more than a decade. He once served on a grand jury and a criminal trial jury. He is originally from California and listed his hobbies as his "children," metalworking, and carpentry.
He said he could "absolutely" be fair in the case and would not have any concerns about returning a guilty verdict.
He is not on social media and receives his news from a spattering of news outlets.
Juror 5 was the only potential juror who raised her hand when lawyers asked if they had ever heard of Trump's other criminal cases.
"President Trump speaks his mind," she said. "And I'd rather that than someone who's in office who you don't know what they're thinking."
A lifelong New Yorker, she currently works as a middle school teacher who lives in Harlem. In her spare time, she enjoys writing and theater.
She normally gets her news from Google and TikTok, listens to inspirational podcasts, and sometimes listens to the Breakfast Club radio show. She said that she "doesn't really care for the news."
Juror 6 is a young software engineer.
She grew up in New York City and lives in Chelsea. She said she gets her news from the New York Times and TikTok. In her spare time, she enjoys plays, restaurants, dancing and watching TV.
"I will be fair and impartial," she said in response to a question about whether Trump's candidacy for the presidency would impact her ability to serve as a fair juror.
Juror 7 is the second white-shoe lawyer to serve on Trump's jury.
He currently lives on the Upper East Side and enjoys spending time outdoors and with his children. He gets his news from the New York Times, New York Post, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post.
He has never served on a jury. He said he supported some of Trump's policies as president but disagreed with others.
"I don't know the man and I don't have opinions about him personally," he said.
Juror 8 is a retired wealth manager who immigrated to the United States from Lebanon. His hobbies include fly fishing, skiing, meditation and yoga.
He said he gets his news from the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, BBC and CNBC. When he paused to answer one of the questions related to having strongly held opinions about Trump, Merchan followed up with the juror.
"Do you have any opinions or beliefs that would prevent you from being impartial? Merchan asked.
"No," the juror responded.
Juror 9 lives in the Upper East Side and has worked as a speech therapist for five years. She said she generally does not follow the news, and while she has opinions about Trump, she could set those aside.
"I fully believe that I can follow the judge's instructions," she said when asked about her ability to apply common sense to the case.
Asked by Trump's attorney Susan Necheles if she had any opinions about Trump, she said, "He was our president, everyone knows who he is."
"I tend to not agree with a lot of his politics and his decisions as a president," she said.
Juror 10 has worked in commerce for a major eyewear company for the last eight years.
In his spare time, he likes the outdoors and enjoys animals. He is not married and lives with another adult who is an accountant.
Juror 11 is a product development manager for a multinational apparel company.
A native Californian, she's called New York home for the past 15 years. In her spare time, she enjoys exploring New York.
"I don't really follow the news," she wrote when asked where she got her information. She disclosed a close friend of hers was convicted of financial fraud.
Asked by Trump's attorney, Susan Necheles, about her feelings on the former president, she responded, "I don't have strong opinions, but I don't like his persona. How he presents himself in public."
"I don't like some of my co-workers but I don't try to sabotage their work," she said, drawing an outburst of laughter from the jury box.
Justice Merchan then asked if she could repeat herself for the record.
"I don't like some of my coworkers," she replied awkwardly, drawing more laughter.
"He seems very selfish and self-serving," she said earnestly. "I don't really appreciate that from any public servant."
She says "his integrity" and how Trump "portrays himself in public — it's not my cup of tea."
"It sounds a bit like what you're saying is you don't like him, based on what you're saying?" Necheles asked.
"Yes," she said.
Juror 12 is a physical therapist who lives on the Upper East Side. She gets her news from the New York Times, USA Today and CNN, and she enjoys podcasts about sports and faith.
She enjoys running, playing tennis and paddle boarding with her husband and dog. She listens to podcasts that are faith-based or sports-related.
Cohen, a Trump loyalist turned critic, is expected to be a key prosecution witness, as he was the one who orchestrated the payoffs. Before testifying in front of the grand jury that brought the indictment last year, Cohen said his goal was "to tell the truth" and insisted he is not seeking revenge but said Trump "needs to be held accountable for his dirty deeds." Cohen served prison time after pleading guilty in 2018 to federal charges, including campaign finance violations, for arranging the payouts to Daniels and McDougal.
Other expected witnesses include Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford. Daniels alleges that she had a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006 that she didn't want, but didn't say no to. Trump says it never happened.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing and has slammed the case as an effort to hurt his 2024 presidential campaign. Trump has acknowledged reimbursing Cohen for the payment and that it was designed to stop Daniels from going public about the alleged encounter. But Trump said in 2018 it had nothing to do with the campaign.
Trump's lawyers will likely attack the case by trying to undermine the credibility of prosecution witnesses like Cohen and Daniels. Trump has described the two as liars, testing the limits of a gag order that the judge imposed. It seeks to curtail the president's inflammatory rhetoric about the case. Trump's lawyers are expected to paint Cohen as a con man and point to his conviction on multiple federal crimes as well as his disbarment to try to persuade jurors that he can't be believed.
Trump recently posted on social media a picture of a 2018 written statement from Daniels, in which she denied they had a sexual relationship. Not long after, Daniels recanted the statement and said that a sexual encounter had occurred. She said her denials were due to a non-disclosure agreement and that she signed the statement because the parties involved "made it sound like I had no choice."
The criminal counts against Trump are Class-E felonies – which are punishable by a maximum of four years in prison – and Merchan has discretion in sentencing if Trump is convicted.
Trump has a limited criminal history (despite his three other pending criminal cases), and similar cases suggest Trump's sentence could range from no prison time to a few years.
If Trump is convicted, Merchan could also weigh his "history and character" when determining the former president's sentence.
It is unclear if Trump, should he be convicted, would be required to report to prison before the November election.
Judge Merchan granted a 30-day adjournment of the case last month after defense lawyers requested discovery sanctions related to the late production by prosecutors of over 100,000 pages of potential evidence from federal prosecutors. The materials were discovered after defense lawyers subpoena federal prosecutors, and the Manhattan District Attorney promptly turned over any new materials in their possession.
While Trump's lawyers requested a longer delay or dismissal of the case, Merchan determined that Trump suffered no harm from the late production of evidence, and the DA's office met their obligations for the turnover of evidence.
"This Court finds the defendant will not suffer any prejudice as a result of the recent document production because the defendant has been given a reasonable amount of time to prepare and respond to the material," Merchan said at a March 25 hearing related to the evidence issue before setting the April 15th trial date.
Trump's three other criminal cases have gotten bogged down in legal fights and appeals, which may mean jurors won't hear about them before the November election.
The 2020 election interference case brought by special counsel Jack Smith remains on hold while Trump pursues his claim that he is immune from prosecution for actions he took while in the White House. The U.S. Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on the matter in late April.
The other case brought by Smith accuses Trump of illegally retaining classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate. The trial had been scheduled to begin in May, but the judge heard arguments last month to set a new trial date and has yet to do so.
No trial date has been set in the Georgia case accusing Trump and his allies of conspiring to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state. Prosecutors have suggested a trial date of August, but defense attorneys are now urging an appeals court to consider whether Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis should be disqualified from the prosecution over a romantic relationship she had with a former top prosecutor who recently withdrew from the case.
Trump has pleaded not guilty in all three cases and says he did nothing wrong.
Infomation from ABC News and the Associated Press
* Get Eyewitness News Delivered
* Follow us on YouTube
* More local news
* Send us a news tip
* Download the abc7NY app for breaking news alerts
Have a breaking news tip or an idea for a story we should cover? Send it to Eyewitness News using the form below. If attaching a video or photo, terms of use apply.
Police: 2 stabbed after dispute aboard party boat in Brooklyn
Columbia to increase security, ID checks as demonstrations continue
NYC previews Earth Day celebrations with car-free open streets