Jurors must be unanimous to convict Trump, can disagree on underlying crimes – The Washington Post
While jurors deliberated in the first trial of a former U.S. president, Donald Trump railed online against one feature of the charges he faces.
NEW YORK — The jurors weighing whether to convict former president Donald Trump of charges that he falsified business records will have to determine whether he did so in furtherance of another crime — a somewhat complex process that the defendant railed against Wednesday afternoon.
On social media, Trump called it ridiculous, unconstitutional and un-American “that the highly Conflicted, Radical Left Judge is not requiring a unanimous decision on the fake charges against me.”
At first glance, it might appear that the former president doesn’t understand one of the basic tenets of the legal system: that guilty verdicts in criminal cases have to be unanimous.
But he was probably referring to one of the quirks of the precise way in which Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) charged Trump, who faces 34 counts of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult-film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
The prosecution theory is essentially a Russian nesting doll of criminal violations — under New York law, falsifying business records is a felony only if the records were falsified in furtherance of another crime.
Prosecutors have said that other crime was violating a state law against unlawfully promoting or preventing an election. But the “unlawful” reference in the state code has to refer to a distinct, different crime.
In Trump’s case, prosecutors have offered three types of crimes that would make the state election-meddling charge come into play: federal election law crimes, tax crimes or false business records.
The jury must be unanimous when it comes to determining whether Trump is guilty or not guilty of each specific falsifying business records count, and whether he did so in an effort to unlawfully impact an election, New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan said. He added, however, that the panel did not have to be unanimous about which of those three types of crimes could serve as the underlying violation that brings the state election charge into play.
That’s what Trump was probably getting at in his online post while he sits in the courthouse waiting for the jury to come to a decision.
“Although you must conclude unanimously that the defendant conspired to promote or prevent the election of any person to a public office by unlawful means, you need not be unanimous as to what those unlawful means were,” Merchan told the jury Wednesday morning.
The judge continued: “In determining whether the defendant conspired to promote or prevent the election of any person to a public office by unlawful means, you may consider the following: one, violations of the Federal Election Campaign Act, otherwise known as FECA; two, the falsification of other business records; or three, violation of tax laws.”
Jurors must deliberate until they reach a verdict on all of the charges or are hopelessly deadlocked. They will be excused late this afternoon if they have not come to a decision and reconvene at the Manhattan courthouse Thursday morning.
The jury in Donald Trump’s hush money trial has begun deliberating. Here’s what happens next and what Trump could face if he’s convicted.
Key witnesses: Several key witnesses, including Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels, have taken the stand. Here’s what Cohen said during his testimony. Read full transcripts from the trial.
Gag order: New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan has twice ruled that Trump violated his gag order, which prohibits him from commenting on jurors and witnesses in the case, among others. Here are all of the times Trump has violated the gag order.
The case: The investigation involves a $130,000 payment made to Daniels, an adult-film actress, during the 2016 presidential campaign. It’s one of many ongoing investigations involving Trump. Here are some of the key people in the case.
The charges: Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Falsifying business records is a felony in New York when there is an “intent to defraud” that includes an intent to “commit another crime or to aid or conceal” another crime. He has pleaded not guilty. Here’s what to know about the charges — and any potential sentence.