Former President Donald Trump entered a drab Manhattan courtroom Monday for the start of a historic criminal trial that will keep him off the campaign trail and could impact his standing with undecided voters ahead of his rematch with President Biden in November.
Former President Donald Trump entered a drab Manhattan courtroom Monday for the start of a historic criminal trial that will keep him off the campaign trail and could impact his standing with undecided voters ahead of his rematch with President Biden in November.
A jury of seven men and five women, plus six alternates, will hear opening arguments from New York prosecutors and Mr. Trump’s lawyers before the state calls its first witness in the first-ever criminal trial of a former U.S. president.
“It is a very, very sad day in America. I can tell you that,” Mr. Trump said on his way into the courtroom.
Mr. Trump, dressed in a navy suit, took his seat and chatted with his attorneys at the defense table in the courtroom with wood panels along the lower half of the walls and florescent lighting overhead. A throng of Secret Service agents accompanied him and mixed with court officers around the courtroom.
The court will break in the early afternoon in observance of Passover and to accommodate a juror who has an appointment. Another juror reported concerns about the media attention around the case, though decided to stay on the trial after a meeting in chambers.
