Judge releases jury questionnaire for Trump's hush money trial – NBC News
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The judge overseeing former President Donald Trump‘s hush money case in New York has approved a questionnaire for jury selection and instructions for prospective jurors in the trial, which is set to begin next week.
In a letter Monday, state Judge Juan Merchan provided attorneys in the case with a jury questionnaire that consists of 42 numbered questions on a range of topics. The form does not ask about party affiliation, political contributions or voting history.
Merchan pushed back against a contention by Trump’s attorneys that potential jurors’ political affiliations and whether they like Trump is important to jury selection, saying that “contrary to defense counsel’s arguments, the purpose of jury selection is not to determine whether a prospective juror likes or does not like one of the parties.”
“Such questions are irrelevant because they do not go to the issue of the prospective juror’s qualifications,” Merchan wrote. “The ultimate issue is whether the prospective juror can ensure us that they will set aside any personal feelings or biases and render a decision that is based on the evidence and the law.”
The form asks prospective jurors numerous questions, including:
Merchan suggested in his letter that the question of political affiliation “may easily be gleaned from the responses to other questions” but warned the attorneys in the case “not to seek to expand the degree of intrusion beyond what is relevant and has already been approved.”
Attorneys for Trump and the Manhattan district attorney’s office did not immediately respond to requests for comment Monday evening.
The dispute over political preferences has also been raised in Trump’s classified documents case in Florida, with his lawyers and prosecutors battling over disclosures about political affiliation in a questionnaire for prospective jurors there.
Trump pleaded not guilty in Manhattan last year after he was indicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in connection with hush money paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.
In addition to detailing the jury questions, Merchan also said Monday that prospective jurors will be informed before they enter the courtroom that they will be identified by the numbers printed on their jury summonses “as a necessary measure to ensure anonymity.”
Merchan ruled last month that he will use an anonymous jury, effectively shielding jurors’ names from the media and the public, citing “a likelihood of bribery, jury tampering, or of physical injury or harassment of juror(s).”
In Monday’s letter, Merchan said the court won’t conduct individual interviews with prospective jurors who say they’re unable to serve, saying the step is “unnecessary, time consuming, and of no benefit” to the case.
The jury questionnaire and instructions come the same day a state appeals court judge rejected Trump’s effort to delay the trial, which is set to begin April 15 with jury selection.
Lisa Rubin is an MSNBC legal correspondent and a former litigator.
Zoë Richards is the evening politics reporter for NBC News.
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