Trial expected for 6 weeks… Judgment of guilt as early as May
Trump: “Election intervention…I campaign in the evening while I’m on trial.”
NATO issue mentioned again in court… “You have to pay”
The trial of the case in which former U.S. President Donald Trump is accused of illegally paying hush money for a sexual scandal with a porn star will begin at the end of next month.
Of the four criminal indictments facing former President Trump, this is the first time that trials have begun in earnest. This is bad news for former President Trump, as the trial must be held at a time when the presidential campaign is in full swing, and there is a possibility that he will be found guilty before the presidential election.
Before the trial, former President Trump claimed that the indictment itself was for the purpose of election interference, but he strongly protested when his request to postpone the trial schedule until after the election was not accepted.
According to CNN and the New York Times (NYT) on the 15th (local time), Judge Juan Mercan of New York’s Manhattan Criminal Court announced that the trial, including jury selection, will begin on March 25th on the day of the hearing regarding former President Trump’s illegal expenditures, including silencing of sexual scandals. He announced that he would start in earnest.
Judge Merchan noted that he expects the trial to last about six weeks. This means that this case could be concluded as early as May.
Former President Trump will have to prepare for the trial during the presidential campaign period, and it is expected that he will inevitably suffer a blow if he is found guilty.
Additionally, once this trial ends in May, there is a possibility that one of the three other criminal trials that remain will begin immediately. Judge Merchan said he had spoken with the judge in the case in which former President Trump was accused of attempting to overthrow the presidential election, and said, “There will not be more than one trial at the same time.”
When the trial began that day, former President Trump’s team requested that the lawsuit be dismissed or the trial postponed until after the election, but neither was accepted.
In response, former President Trump’s lawyer objected, saying, “I strongly believe that it is a great injustice for the trial to begin on March 25th.”
He claimed, “This is election interference,” saying it forces former President Trump, who should be focusing on his election campaign, to sit in court.
Judge Merchan asked, “What is the legal argument?” for delaying the trial, and the defense lawyer argued, “That part (what I just said) is the legal argument.” Judge Merchan concluded the trial by saying, “That is not a legal argument.”
Former President Trump, who was not required to attend, also watched the trial in person in court that day.
Former President Trump met with reporters before entering the courtroom and said, “This is not a crime,” and “It is just one of the ways they are trying to harm me because they are ahead of the election by numbers that no one has ever seen.”
“I want the trial postponed because I am running for president,” he said, emphasizing that he wanted to spend time campaigning rather than preparing for court arguments.
He also said on his social networking service (SNS) ‘Truth Social’, “The crime does not exist,” and “They could have (indicted) three years ago, but they wanted to do it before the election. They waited until the election period. “It is election interference,” he wrote.
After the trial was over, “It was election interference by Biden. Because he thinks this is the only way he can get elected. “He has achieved nothing.”
When asked how he would conduct his election campaign as the trial begins in March, he answered, “I will do it in the evening.”
In addition, former President Trump repeatedly stated his position regarding the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in front of the court on this day.
“NATO countries have to pay,” former President Trump said. “They haven’t paid what they’re supposed to pay, and they laugh at America’s stupidity of giving $60 billion every time someone comes and asks.”
During the October 2016 presidential election, former President Trump was accused of 34 counts, including giving $130,000 (KRW 164.46 million) to adult film star Stormy Daniels through his personal attorney, Michael Cohen, to keep her from having sex with him, and making false entries in the company’s books. there is.
Prosecutors put former President Trump on trial in March of last year, and it was the first case in which a former president was criminally indicted in the United States.
Former President Trump denied all charges and pleaded not guilty at the indictment proceedings held a month later.
Meanwhile, trial proceedings related to former President Trump’s criminal charges are also underway in Georgia on this day.
Prosecutors in Fulton County, Georgia, indicted 19 people, including former President Trump, on charges including attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election in August of last year.
However, suspicions were raised that prosecutor Fanny Willis, who led the indictment, hired a lover with whom he had an affair to the investigation team and went on a trip in return for this.
Accordingly, before starting the trial of former President Trump, the court is holding an interrogation date to determine whether prosecutor Willis’ participation in the trial is appropriate.
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Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.