A prosecutor says Donald Trump « orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt » the election. A defense lawyer countered by saying Trump “was innocent,” and the case should never have been brought.
Donald Trump “orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt” the 2016 presidential election when he conspired to prevent damaging stories about his personal life from becoming public, a prosecutor told jurors Monday at the start of the former president’s historic hush money trial.
A defense lawyer countered by saying that Trump “was innocent” and that the case should never have been brought.
The opening statements launched the first criminal trial of a former American president, a case that will unfold against the backdrop of a closely contested White House race in which Trump is not only the presumptive Republican nominee but also a defendant facing the prospect of a felony conviction and prison.
“The defendant, Donald Trump, orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election. Then he covered up that criminal conspiracy by lying in his New York business records over and over and over again,” prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told jurors.
THE JURY: Final jurors seated for Trump’s hush money case, with opening statements set for Monday
The statements offered the 12-person jury — and the voting public — a roadmap for how to view the allegations at the heart of the case. They provided radically
They also served as an introduction to the colorful cast of characters that comprise the tawdry saga, including a porn actor who says she had a sexual encounter with Trump; the lawyer who prosecutors say paid her to keep quiet about it; and the tabloid publisher who agreed to function as the campaign’s “eyes and ears.”
Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records — a charge punishable by up to four years in prison — though it’s not clear if the judge would seek to put him behind bars. A conviction would not preclude Trump from becoming president again, but because it is a state case, he would not be able to attempt to pardon himself if found guilty. He has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
The case brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg revisits a chapter from Trump’s history when his celebrity past collided with his political ambitions and, prosecutors say, he scrambled to stifle stories that he feared could torpedo his campaign.
