For the first time in history, a former president of the United States sat in the dock yesterday in a criminal trial. Wearing his signature blue suit and red tie, Donald Trump appeared early this morning at the New York Criminal Court in southern Manhattan to face the first of four trials pending this election year. When he arrived at the court, minutes before sitting in front of judge Juan Merchán, he insisted in front of the cameras in his story: that he is the victim of "a political persecution" and that the process is an "attack on America" promoted by his rival in the November elections, Joe Biden.
However, in this state case, the federal administration has nothing to do. The tycoon is charged with 34 crimes related to the document falsification scheme he created to bribe porn actress Stormy Daniels in 2016. In the middle of the election campaign he bought her silence about an extramarital affair they had had a decade ago, and he justified the payments as part of his legal fees. The indictment for document falsification – filed a year ago by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg – is aggravated by an alleged violation of campaign finance laws, since the commission of the crime was used to hide from the people of the States United relevant data of the candidate.
A conviction could mean that the Republican would have to spend a decade in prison before the presidential elections in November, which would create an unprecedented situation that, however, would not disqualify him from running in the elections, since no article of the Constitution does not prohibit it. Each of the 34 crimes is punishable by a maximum of four years in prison, and several jurists agree that, should he be found guilty, he could face at least a decade behind bars. The maximum sentence could be 20 years, the limit established in New York for such crimes.
Almost a month later than planned, due to the adjournment of the magistrate at the request of the defense, the trial finally began yesterday with the selection of the jury, which will be composed of twelve anonymous citizens of New York and six alternates. Yesterday, hundreds of candidates (out of a total of 500) were summoned, who had to answer 42 questions designed to test their impartiality about the former president. Trump's defense argued that a fair trial is impossible in Manhattan, as it is a district with a large Democratic majority.
This process will last between one and two weeks, and the former president's defense has already announced that it intends to go to all hearings. After that, the arguments of the parties and the questionnaires to the witnesses will begin, and the verdict of the jury is expected between the end of May and the beginning of June.
Among the witnesses that the prosecution plans to bring to testify, his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen will be the most decisive. In 2016, he was the one who transferred $130,000 to Daniels, and Trump later reimbursed him by recording the payment as “legal expenses” for his company. Cohen, now converted into an enemy of the tycoon, acknowledged the existence of that payment and pleaded guilty to violating the law on financing electoral campaigns. Also scheduled to testify is the actress with whom Trump denies having an affair in 2006, Stephanie Clifford, whose stage name is Stormy Daniels.
In the weeks leading up to the trial, and despite Judge Merchán having imposed a gag order on Trump for his repeated comments about himself, the mogul posted a series of messages on Truth Social disparaging Cohen, Clifford, the judge and the fiscal The latter, Bragg, asked Judge Merchán to fine Trump $3,000 for violating the gag order with his attacks on witnesses.
During the two months that the trial will last, Trump will continue to use the corridors of the courts and social networks to influence his campaign of victimization. "This is an unprecedented political persecution, an assault on America, and that's why I'm proud to be here", he said yesterday in a heroic tone when he arrived in court.
