Donald Trump’s jury politics aren’t a disqualifier: former prosecutor

Former federal prosecutor Glenn Kirshner said Saturday that the political judgment of potential jurors in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial will not disqualify them.

Jury selection begins Monday in the Manhattan criminal case against Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. Under investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office, Trump was charged in March 2023 with falsifying business records related to hush money payments he made to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign. was indicted. Daniels claimed in 2006 that she had an affair with Trump, which Trump denies.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him and called the case politically motivated.

The former president’s legal team tried to delay the trial, arguing that “we cannot currently select an impartial jury based on adverse pretrial publicity.” However, a New York Court of Appeals judge rejected the request last Monday.

Meanwhile, Judge Juan Melchan, who is presiding over the case, recently announced 42 questions he agreed to ask each potential juror. The jury questionnaire included questions asking prospective jurors whether they had any strong opinions or beliefs that might prevent them from being fair in a trial.

Kirshner, a former assistant U.S. attorney and frequent critic of President Trump, discussed the upcoming trial with political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen. legal bankruptcy In a YouTube video posted Saturday night, he reassured viewers that the jury being selected would be fair and impartial.

“People who are called into court as jurors probably have some opinion about Donald Trump. They may be affiliated with a political party, they may even be activists on the left or the right. They’re not all the same.’ That’s a disqualifier,” Kirschner said.

The former prosecutor said the jury selection process “determines whether each person who may ultimately be selected to serve on the jury is truly fair and impartial, regardless of politics, ideology, preferences, or aversions.” It is an intensive process designed to . ”

Kirshner explained that judges aren’t the only ones involved in the jury selection process, “to make sure the jury is fair and impartial and convinced by Donald Trump’s case. It’s up to the prosecutor to ask a series of very probing questions.” lawyer. ”

He added: “The defense attorney’s job is not necessarily to get a fair and impartial jury. They’re looking for jurors who are as pro-Trump as possible.” [sic] You probably deserved to sit, and you probably still deserve to sit. Therefore, everyone has their own goals and objectives. But I am confident that a fair and impartial jury will be present in this case and that Donald Trump and the people of New York will receive a fair trial. ”

newsweek asked President Trump’s press secretary and one of his lawyers for comment on this story via email.