Thursday morning, Juror No. 2 told Judge Juan Merchan that she could no longer be an impartial participant in Donald Trump’s historic trial. She was not alone.
First thing Thursday morning, a woman identified only as Juror No. 2 told Judge Juan Merchan that, upon reflection, she feared she could no longer be an impartial participant in Donald Trump’s historic hush money jury. Her change of heart came after Fox News host Jesse Watters devoted a significant amount of airtime to discussing biographical details about her and why they might make her a problem for Trump. Her identity was as good as public, the juror told Merchan. (He eventually excused her.)
She was a juror, acceptable to both sides, who got scared off.
It was the sort of tense courtroom scene you might expect in a mafia trial. But this is not a mafia trial — or at least, it’s not supposed to be.
Merchan has since ordered lawyers and members of the media to take even stricter precautions to protect juror identities. That he needed to do so is revealing. In a typical case, jurors’ names are known and freely shared. Lawyers and the media often speak with them after the trial is over to get their impressions of the case and the process. That’s normal in a country where U.S. senators, billionaires, sports stars and actors all have faced accountability in civil and criminal cases, just like regular people. Everyone is beholden to the same legal system.
The idea that a former president and his followers could pose a threat to Americans performing their civic duty is something we must not forget amid the chaos. It’s easy to wave off as just another Trumpian quirk — until someone gets hurt.
Trump has frequently invoked violence. During his first campaign, he promised to pay the legal bills of people who beat up protesters at his rallies.
