Trump gripes he can’t reject ‘unlimited’ jurors in New York hush money trial

Donald
Trump
complained
Wednesday
that
his
lawyers
were
not
given “unlimited”
chances
to
reject
prospective
jurors
at
his
New
York
criminal
hush
money

trial.

But

state
law
caps
the
number
of
would-be

jurors
his
lawyers
can
strike
without
cause.

Trump
has
received
the
correct
number
of
strikes
given
the
type
of
criminal
charges
he
faces:
10
peremptory
strikes
for
jurors,
plus
another
two
for
every
alternate
juror.

“I
thought
STRIKES
were
supposed
to
be ‘unlimited’
when
we
were
picking
our
jury?”
Trump
wrote
in
a

post
on
Truth
Social. “I
was
then
told
we
only
had
10,
not
nearly
enough
when
we
were
purposely
given
the
2nd
Worst
Venue
in
the
Country.”

His
complaints
came
a
day
after
the
first
seven
jurors
were
picked
for
the
trial
in
Manhattan
Supreme
Court.

Five
more
jurors
and
six
alternates
remain
to
be
seated
when
the
selection
process
resumes
Thursday
with
a
new
group
of
96
potential
jurors,
following
a
break
Wednesday.

In
criminal
trials
in
New
York,
both
the
prosecutors
and
the
defense
are
allowed
a
certain
number
of
peremptory
strikes,
which
can
be
used
to
dismiss
prospective
jurors
without
any
reason.

The
number
of
allotted
strikes
depends
on
the
level
of
the
highest
crime
charged.

Trials
for
Class
E
felonies,
which
include
the
charges
of
falsifying
business
records
that
Trump
faces,
get
the
fewest
number
of
challenges.

Samantha
Chorny,
a
criminal
defense
lawyer
in
New
York
City,
told
CNBC
that
if
there
were
unlimited
peremptory
strikes,
as
Trump
wants, “I
mean,
no
one
would
ever
pick
a
jury.”

Trump’s
complaint
on
Truth
Social
demonstrates “his
willful
ignorance
of
the
law,”
said
Jeremy
Saland,
another
New
York
criminal
defense
attorney.

Saland
said
it
is
difficult
to
imagine
that
Trump “doesn’t
know
that
simple
fact”
about
jury
selection
strike
rules,
particularly
since
he
faces
four
pending
criminal
cases.

“It
tells
me
he
doesn’t
really
believe”
what
he
is
saying
and
that
Trump
is
trying
to “appear
as
a
victim,”
Saland
said.

Although
Trump
is
considered
innocent
until
proven
guilty, “this
kind
of
nonsense,
it’s
really
hurtful
to
law
and
order,”
Saland
said.

Trump’s
lawyers
and
prosecutors
can
make
an
unlimited
number
of
requests
to
Judge
Juan
Merchan
to
strike
a
potential
juror
for
cause.

The
cause
can
include
a
person’s
inability
to
be
fair
and
impartial
to
either
side
in
a
trial.

Merchan
on
Tuesday
rejected
at
least
one
request
by
Trump’s
attorneys
to
strike
a
prospective
juror
for
cause.

Some
legal
experts
had
initially
expected
it
to
take
up
to
two
weeks
to
select
a
jury,
pointing
to
the
presumed
difficulty
of
finding
people
who
could
fairly
judge
the
Republican
Party’s
polarizing
presumptive
presidential
nominee.

But
after
the
first
group
of
jurors
were
seated
Tuesday,
Merchan
said
opening
statements
could
begin
Monday
morning
if
the
current
pace
of
jury
selection
continues.

Trump
after
court
Tuesday
accused
Merchan
of “rushing.”
But
he
previously
complained
that
the
projected
six-week
length
of
the
trial
is
a
form
of “election
interference”
because
it
would
keep
him
off
the
campaign
trail.

Trump
is
charged
in
the
case
with
falsifying
business
records
related
to
the
$130,000
hush
money
payment
his
then-lawyer
Michael
Cohen
gave
porn
star
Stormy
Daniels
shortly
before
the
2016
presidential
election.

Manhattan
District
Attorney
Alvin
Bragg
accuses
Trump
of
trying
to
influence
that
election,
which
he
ended
up
winning,
by
covertly
silencing
Daniels
from
speaking
about
a
sexual
tryst
she
had
with
Trump
years
earlier.
Trump
denies
having
sex
with
Daniels.

After
the
trial
adjourned
Tuesday
afternoon,
Trump
visited
the
Sanaa
Convenient
Store
in

Harlem,
which
was
the
site
of
a
fatal
stabbing
in
2022
that
led
to
a
controversial
charging
decision
by
Bragg’s
office.

Store
clerk
Jose
Alba
was
arrested
and
charged
with
murder
after
stabbing
an
ex-convict
who
was
attacking
him
at
the
store.
But
Bragg
dropped
the
charges
weeks
later
after
public
outcry
about
the
arrest,
which
had
kept
Alba
in
jail
for
weeks.

Trump’s
visit
to
the
store
was
the
first
campaign-related
event
he
has
held
in
his
bid
to
unseat
President

Joe
Biden
since
his
trial
began
Monday.

On
Wednesday,
a
spokesperson
for
Bragg
said
of
Alba’s
case, “This
matter
was
resolved
nearly
two
years
ago,
and
the
charges
were
dismissed
after
a
thorough
investigation.”

“D.A.
Bragg’s
top
priority
remains
combating
violent
crime
and
the
office
has
worked
hand
in
hand
with
the
NYPD
to
drive
down
overall
crime
in
Manhattan,
including
double
digit
decreases
in
homicides
and
shootings
since
he
took
office,”
the
spokesperson
said.

Correction:
This
story
has
been
updated
to
reflect
the
correct
spelling
of
Jose
Alba’s
name.