Jury selection began Monday in Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial, making history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges.Trump is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organization records as part of a scheme to bury stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as his reputation was suffering at the time from comments he had made about women. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. For months leading up to the trial, Trump’s legal team filed a number of pretrial motions, including attempts to delay the trial and to remove the judge.Here’s a look at the pretrial motions filed in Trump’s hush money case:Attempt to delay trialTrump’s attorneys lost a bid to get the hush-money case dismissed and have since repeatedly sought to delay it, prompting a flurry of last-minute appeals court hearings last week.Among other things, Trump’s lawyers maintain that the jury pool in overwhelmingly Democratic Manhattan has been tainted by negative publicity about Trump and that the case should be moved elsewhere.An appeals judge turned down an emergency request to delay the trial while the change-of-venue request goes to a group of appellate judges, who are set to consider it in the coming weeks. Video below: New York DA lays out case against TrumpAttempt to remove judgeOn Monday, Judge Juan M. Merchan turned down a request that Trump’s lawyers had filed asking the judge to recuse himself – a move they also unsuccessfully made earlier in the case.The Trump legal team pointed largely to the judge’s daughter’s work as a political consultant whose firm has worked for prominent Democrats, including President Joe Biden.Trump’s lawyers have argued that the daughter’s job represents a conflict of interest for Merchan, and they also claimed she had posted an image of Trump behind bars on social media. The court system said she had closed the social media account before the photo was posted. Attempt to remove gag order Merchan issued a gag order on Trump and later expanded it after the former president assailed the judge’s daughter and made a false claim about her on social media weeks ago.”This pattern of attacking family members of presiding jurists and attorneys assigned to his cases serves no legitimate purpose,” Merchan wrote. “It merely injects fear in those assigned or called to participate in the proceedings that not only they, but their family members as well, are ‘fair game,’ for Defendant’s vitriol.”Trump’s lawyers had fought the gag order and its expansion, arguing that Trump was engaging in protected political campaign speech.A gag order violation could result in Trump being held in contempt of court, fined or even jailed.Request for days offTrump’s lawyers have requested that the trial not be held on May 17 so that the former president may attend his son Barron’s high school graduation. A Trump lawyer also requested the trial not be held June 3 so that he could attend his own son’s graduation.Request to expand juror questionnaireShortly after court convened on Monday, Trump’s attorneys asked Merchan to expand the already extensive questionnaire filled out by prospective jurors to weed out people who oppose the former president. Merchan declined the request, dismissing the notion that the jury questions were slanted to the benefit of prosecutors.The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Jury selection began Monday in Donald Trump’s New York hush money trial, making history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges.
Trump is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organization records as part of a scheme to bury stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as his reputation was suffering at the time from comments he had made about women. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.
For months leading up to the trial, Trump’s legal team filed a number of pretrial motions, including attempts to delay the trial and to remove the judge.
Here’s a look at the pretrial motions filed in Trump’s hush money case:
Attempt to delay trial
Trump’s attorneys lost a bid to get the hush-money case dismissed and have since repeatedly sought to delay it, prompting a flurry of last-minute appeals court hearings last week.
Among other things, Trump’s lawyers maintain that the jury pool in overwhelmingly Democratic Manhattan has been tainted by negative publicity about Trump and that the case should be moved elsewhere.
An appeals judge turned down an emergency request to delay the trial while the change-of-venue request goes to a group of appellate judges, who are set to consider it in the coming weeks.
Video below: New York DA lays out case against Trump
Attempt to remove judge
On Monday, Judge Juan M. Merchan turned down a request that Trump’s lawyers had filed asking the judge to recuse himself – a move they also unsuccessfully made earlier in the case.
The Trump legal team pointed largely to the judge’s daughter’s work as a political consultant whose firm has worked for prominent Democrats, including President Joe Biden.
Trump’s lawyers have argued that the daughter’s job represents a conflict of interest for Merchan, and they also claimed she had posted an image of Trump behind bars on social media. The court system said she had closed the social media account before the photo was posted.
Attempt to remove gag order
Merchan issued a gag order on Trump and later expanded it after the former president assailed the judge’s daughter and made a false claim about her on social media weeks ago.
“This pattern of attacking family members of presiding jurists and attorneys assigned to his cases serves no legitimate purpose,” Merchan wrote. “It merely injects fear in those assigned or called to participate in the proceedings that not only they, but their family members as well, are ‘fair game,’ for Defendant’s vitriol.”
Trump’s lawyers had fought the gag order and its expansion, arguing that Trump was engaging in protected political campaign speech.
A gag order violation could result in Trump being held in contempt of court, fined or even jailed.
Request for days off
Trump’s lawyers have requested that the trial not be held on May 17 so that the former president may attend his son Barron’s high school graduation.
A Trump lawyer also requested the trial not be held June 3 so that he could attend his own son’s graduation.
Request to expand juror questionnaire
Shortly after court convened on Monday, Trump’s attorneys asked Merchan to expand the already extensive questionnaire filled out by prospective jurors to weed out people who oppose the former president. Merchan declined the request, dismissing the notion that the jury questions were slanted to the benefit of prosecutors.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
