Donald Trump Hush Money Trial Kicks Off With No Jurors Being Selected

Donald Trump has made history as he finally became the first former US President to stand trial in a criminal case as his hush money trial finally kicked off in New York City. Like most trials, it started with jury selection, but no juror was ever selected during the first day.

It should be noted that the jury selection for this specific case is said to be stricter than usual, given who the man standing on trial is. With no juror being chosen yet, the selection process is scheduled to resume on Tuesday.

The court summoned 96 people in the jury pool, according to the Associated Press. Donald Trump was required to be present for the selection, and he was seen craning his neck to look at the potential jurors. He was also seen whispering to his lawyer as the jurors entered the jury box.

"You are about to participate in a trial by jury. The system of trial by jury is one of the cornerstones of our judicial system," Judge Juan Merchan told all 96 potential jurors. "The name of this case is the People of the State of New York vs. Donald Trump."

The Difficulty To Find Jurors in the Donald Trump Hush Money Trial

It was noted that the notoriety of the former president made it very difficult to select any juror, especially as New York leans heavily Democrat. New York is also Donald Trump's home state and this is where he rose to fame as one of the city's most famous real estate developers and reality show stars.

The first panel of potential jurors only included 96 people in the jury pool. Over half of that first panel admitted they could not be fair and impartial at the trial and were therefore excused. Nine more were excused after raising their hands when the judge asked whether they could not serve for any other reason.

According to Judge Merchan himself, the key is "whether the prospective juror can assure us that they will set aside any personal feelings or biases and render a decision that is based on the evidence and the law."

CNN reported that there are still nine more jurors who need to be questioned and another panel of potential jurors will be brought in after the first group is completed.

Judge Considers Fining Donald Trump $3,000 for Attacking Potential Witnesses

Before the trial, Donald Trump attacked two potential jurors on social media and then attacked one of them again, as well as Stormy Daniels, the porn star he paid the hush money to. Prosecutors have asked the judge to fine him $3,000 over these attacks.

However, Trump's lawyers argued that he was just "responding to salacious, repeated attacks by these witnesses." Judge Merchan responded, "I don't recall that there's an exception if he's being attacked."

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Written by: Rick Martin

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