Judge Merchan’s instructions to the jury in the hush money case raised eyebrows among some conservatives.
Judge Juan Merchan’s instructions to the jury in Donald Trump’s hush money case raised eyebrows from the former president and his supporters on Wednesday.
Jury deliberations began in the case on Wednesday following weeks of testimony in the first prosecution of a former U.S. president.
In this case, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg accused Trump of falsifying business documents to cover up a hush money payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels during his 2016 presidential campaign. Bragg’s office alleges that the payment was intended to prevent her from going public about her claims of having an affair with the former president.
Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, has denied an affair with Daniels and pleaded not guilty to all 34 felony counts. He has also accused Bragg of targeting him for political purposes, equating the trial with election interference.
Among Merchan’s instructions to the jury was that for Trump to be convicted, all jurors must agree he falsified business documents to cover up a crime.
