the former president of the United States Donald Trump (2017-2021) was found guilty this Thursday in the criminal trial against him in New York City for falsifying documents to silence a porn actress and protect his presidential run in 2016. The Republican thus becomes the first president in United States history to be convicted of a crime.
(Also read: What will happen if former President Donald Trump is found guilty in the trial against him in New York?)
Trump, the 45th president of the United States (2017-2021), is charged with 34 counts of falsifying accounting documents for his empire, the Trump Organization.to hide a payment of $130,000 to former porn actress Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence about an alleged sexual encounter they had in 2006.
Prosecutors claim the fraud was intended to prevent voters in 2016 from learning about his behavior.
Former United States President Donald Trump.
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In his closing arguments on Tuesday, Trump’s defense insisted that the evidence for a conviction simply does not exist, while the prosecution responded that they are voluminous and unavoidable. “The defendant’s intent to defraud could not be clearer,” prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said, urging jurors to resort to his “common sense” and return a guilty verdict.
After a few hours of work, they asked to hear again excerpts from the testimonies of two key protagonists of the case, the former head of a tabloid close to Trump, David Pecker, and the former personal lawyer and confidant of the former president, who is now the main accuser. of the case, Michael Cohen.
(Also: Lawyers, bankers and professors: they are the 12 jurors who will define the future of Donald Trump in the trial in New York)
The political repercussions will far outweigh the seriousness of the charges, since, just five months before the presidential elections, the candidate would also become a convicted criminal.
Jury reaches verdict
Trump trial jury reports that it has already reached the verdict. The jury asked Colombian-born judge Juan Merchán for a period of 30 minutes to fill out forms and finally announce his decision.
Trump remains calm
According to reports from the press present in court, Donald Trump remains calm, but less jovial than on other occasions.
Could Trump go to prison?
If convicted, Trump faces up to four years in prison on each of the 34 charges, but legal experts say that because he has no criminal record he is unlikely to go to jail. A conviction would not prevent him from running in the November elections and it is almost certain that the former president would appeal the ruling.
The trial could also be thrown out if the jury fails to agree and prosecutors could request a new trial.
Other cases against Trump
In addition to the New York case, Trump has been charged in Washington and Georgia with conspiracy to overturn the results of the 2020 election. He also faces charges in Florida for taking huge amounts of classified documents after leaving the White House. However, the New York case is the only one likely to go to trial before Election Day.
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