Former President Donald Trump appeared this Monday, April 15, in a New York court to begin the jury selection process for the trial for alleged money payments to actress Stormy Daniels, something for which he had to falsify business records. .
According to the news agency AP, this marks an unprecedented moment in the history of the United States, as Trump is the first former American president to face a criminal trial. During this process, the magnate has accusations of 34 serious charges.
Juan M. Merchán, judge in charge of the case, indicated that this process is of vital importance for the trial, since the members of the jury must be impartial to be able to make decisions based on evidence and the law, leaving aside any personal opinion or bias. towards the politician.
This particular trial will focus on accusations related to payments of $130,000 made by the mogul’s company to his then-lawyer, Michael Cohen, who would have used that sum to pay for Stormy Daniels’ silence.
The adult actress would have received this money in exchange for keeping quiet about an alleged affair she had with Trump, which could have affected the Republican’s political campaign.
Prosecutors argue that such payments were falsely recorded as legal fees to conceal their nature, while the defense claims these were legitimate legal expenses.
The businessman has repeatedly denounced that the trial against him is “political persecution,” ensuring that the accusations are only part of an attempt to derail his career before the 2024 elections.
The process consists of selecting 12 members of a jury and six alternates. To do this, dozens of citizens are summoned to the courtroom at the request of said magistrate. These people will be identified only by numbers to keep their names secret from everyone except prosecutors, Trump and legal teams.
The group will receive a brief introduction about the case and the responsibilities of the jury. After this, you will be asked to raise your hand if you believe you cannot serve fairly and impartially. Those who do so will be exempt from the process.
After that, the people who remained will be questioned with 42 pre-approved questions. Some of these range from basic background to particular aspects of the case.
Depending on the answers, lawyers may request that certain people be excluded for “just cause.” Those in charge of the process also have the option of using “peremptory challenges,” which will allow them to reject 10 potential jurors and two alternates without having to provide a reason.
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