A New York jury found Donald Trump guilty of multiple felonies at his hush-money trial, making him the first former US president to be convicted of crimes.
Trump was found guilty on Thursday on all 34 counts of falsifying business records to conceal a hush-money payment to the porn star Stormy Daniels just before the 2016 election. Prosecutors said Trump led a broader scheme to influence the election by concealing stories of his alleged sexual encounters with women.
The conviction creates a daunting legal and political path for Trump as he faces President Joe Biden in November as the presumptive Republican nominee. Trump, who has repeatedly attacked the case as Democratic election interference, could be sentenced to as many as four years in prison but is certain to appeal and may remain free during the process. The judge has set sentencing for 11 July, just days before Republicans are set to select him as their 2024 nominee.
Trump has denied having an affair with Daniels and falsifying records.
The verdict is a consequential moment in the run-up to the 2024 election, forcing voters to decide whether they want a convicted felon in the White House. But Trump, a billionaire who made his fortune in real estate, retains an iron grip on the Republican Party despite his history of legal and personal scandals.
Trump (77) still faces criminal trials in Washington, DC, and Georgia over his attempt to overturn the 2020 election, and one in Florida about his failure to return classified national security documents that he took from the White House. His fundraising and political support remain strong, however, and he leads Biden in many polls. If elected, Trump cannot pardon himself in the hush-money case because he was convicted on state, not federal, charges.
Sentencing
The verdict, after two days of deliberations, followed five weeks of vivid testimony that riveted the nation. Prosecutors working for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg argued that Trump oversaw a scheme to influence the 2016 election by using Trump Organization records to hide the hush money scheme.
“Everything Mr Trump and his cohorts did in this case is cloaked in lies,” prosecutor Joshua Steinglass told Manhattan jurors in his closing arguments. “The evidence is literally overwhelming.”
Justice Juan Merchan, who oversaw the trial, could sentence Trump to time behind bars or impose a probationary term, citing his age and status as a first-time offender. Merchan warned Trump during the trial he could put him behind bars for repeatedly violating a gag order. He also acknowledged the security requirements of imprisoning a former president.
Evidence
Much of the trial revolved around Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and fixer who went to prison for lying under oath and other crimes. Cohen paid $130,000 to Daniels to stay silent about her alleged tryst with Trump in 2006. She threatened to go public in October 2016, after the release of the Access Hollywood tape in which Trump discussed sexually assaulting women.
“This is a disaster, total disaster,” Trump said about the tape, according to Cohen. “Women will hate me. Guys may think it’s cool, but this is going to be a disaster for the campaign.”
Cohen testified he repeatedly discussed Daniels with Trump, who blessed the hush money deal. He said Trump authorised a plan to reimburse Cohen a total of $420,000, covering the Daniels check, payments for another vendor, an allotment for taxes and a bonus.
Cohen told jurors he submitted invoices that falsely billed for legal fees, not a reimbursement. Prosecutors said the 34 false-business record counts spanned his 11 invoices as well as 11 checks to Cohen and 12 company vouchers.
The jury convicted Trump despite withering attacks on Cohen, the prosecution’s star witness. Trump attorney Todd Blanche assailed Cohen as a serial liar who went from loving Trump to hating him and then made millions of dollars on books and podcasts castigating his former boss.
Cohen is “the human embodiment of reasonable doubt,” Blanche said. “Michael Cohen is the ‘Gloat’. He’s literally the greatest liar of all time.”
Trump never testified despite promising before the trial to take the witness stand. Still, jurors heard a secret recording that Cohen made of Trump, saw video clips of him, and read his tweets about Cohen and Daniels.
Trial highlights
Prosecutors said the conspiracy began in August 2015 during a meeting at Trump Tower attended by Trump, Cohen and David Pecker, the former chief executive officer of the firm that published the National Enquirer. Pecker testified he promised to serve as the “eyes and ears” of the Trump campaign, publish positive pieces and attack rivals. But more importantly, Pecker said he would tell Cohen whenever he heard about negative stories.
Pecker explained why his firm, American Media, paid $150,000 to former Playboy Playmate Karen McDougal to keep quiet about her claims of a yearlong affair with Trump. He said he expected women to come forward with stories about Trump when he was running for president because he “was well-known as the most eligible bachelor and dated the most beautiful women”.
Jurors also heard from Daniels, who described in detail the sexual encounter that she said took place in Trump’s hotel room after meeting him at a Lake Tahoe golf tournament.
Trump frequently commented about the trial on the campaign trail and to television cameras outside the courtroom. Merchan found that Trump violated a gag order intended to bar him from commenting on jurors, witnesses and prosecutors.
The judge at one point threatened to jail Trump if he did it again. The former president did not. DM