The 12 jurors, seven men and five women, in the criminal case in New York against former President of the United States Donald Trump – accused of falsifying documents to buy the silence of former porn star Stormy Daniel and protect his presidential candidacy in 2016 – began deliberating this Wednesday (29) to determine whether the tycoon is guilty or innocent.
The jury must reach its verdict unanimously, which could take several days, since if one member does not agree, Judge Juan M. Merchan will ask the 12 to continue deliberating until they reach a joint decision.
If jurors still cannot reach a consensus, Merchan could be forced to declare a full or partial mistrial, something that happens when a trial ends without a unanimous verdict being reached.
This Wednesday, the jury will deliberate until 4:30 pm (local time, 5:30 pm Brasília time) in a room where they will not have access to their phones.
Judge’s instructions
Before leaving, the judge told the jury that it was their responsibility to analyze the evidence and remain impartial, something especially complicated given the defendant’s popularity.
During deliberations, jurors will have access to the 300 trial exhibits on a computer and will be able to ask the judge questions.
Merchan reminded the jury in his more than hour-long instructions that they “may not speculate on matters relating to the sentence or penalty” that Trump will receive and that the defendant was “not required to prove that he is not guilty” or to testify, which is something which he did not do, but it is up to the Public Prosecutor’s Office to prove that he is guilty.
The magistrate also told the jury that their verdict must be unanimous on each charge and advised them to “listen to each other”.
However, Merchan stressed that while their goal should be to reach a settlement, they should not change their mind just because they want the trial to end or because they feel like they are in the minority.
More than 30 accusations against Trump
The judge read and analyzed the 34 criminal counts of falsifying business records that Trump faces, all related to reimbursing his lawyer Michael Cohen for paying former porn star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in 2016 to hush up her alleged sexual relationship in 2006, but each of them refers to a separate record, such as checks and invoices.
For jurors to find Trump guilty on all 34 counts, they must conclude not only that the former president falsified or arranged to falsify business records “with the intent to defraud,” but also that he did so with the intent to conceal another crime. , to intervene in the 2016 presidential elections in his favor.
In theory, the jury could conclude, for example, that Trump falsified business records by writing checks from the trust and his personal account, but is not responsible for Cohen’s invoices.
In that scenario, the jury could convict Trump on some charges and acquit him on others.
Arguments of the parties
This Tuesday (28), in a tiring session lasting almost 12 hours, the Public Ministry and the defense used their final arguments to try to convince the jury for the last time of the guilt or innocence of the former president and current Republican candidate.
Trump’s team took advantage of its turn to label the trial’s key witness, Michael Cohen, the tycoon’s former lawyer and right-hand man, as a liar, while the Public Prosecutor’s Office focused on carrying out an exhaustive review of the evidence it has against the Republican.
If convicted, the tycoon could be sentenced to probation or up to four years in prison. This would be the worst-case scenario for Trump, who would become the first major party candidate to run for president and be declared a criminal.
In any case, if Trump is found guilty, it will likely be several weeks or months before he is sentenced by a judge, during which time he would likely be released on bail since he would be the perpetrator of a non-violent crime.
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