Donald Trump arrives in New York court for criminal trial over hush money

It has been reported that Donald Trump has stepped foot into the court for his trial on criminal charges regarding his attempts to silence Stormy Daniels, an adult film actress, and Karen McDougal, a model for Playboy magazine. The trial is expected to commence today and jury selection will take place in the Manhattan Supreme Court.

Just before Trump made his way into the courtroom, dressed in his typical navy suit and red tie, he had a conversation in the hallway.

President Trump expressed his frustration towards what he perceives is an attack on his country. He remarked that such a situation has never occurred previously and that it is unprecedented. He further characterized the incident as an act of political harassment.

He described the case as one that should not have been initiated and an attack on our nation. According to him, our country is not doing well and is being controlled by an inefficient man who is deeply linked to this particular matter.

This is essentially a move to harm a rival in the political arena, and nothing more.

As his defense attorney, Todd Blanche, led the way, he entered the courtroom with a hunched posture and a scowl on his face. He licked his lips uneasily.

This day is historic for the United States, as Trump becomes the first president - present or past - to go through a criminal trial. This is happening at the same time as the ongoing race for presidency where Trump is the favored nominee for the Republican Party and consistently polls higher than Joe Biden in direct comparisons.

Shortly after 9am, Trump showed up at the New York criminal court to begin selecting the jury. He left Trump Tower and rode with his legal team, composed of Todd Blanche and Emil Bove, via motorcade to the courthouse at 100 Centre Street. Journalists started taking their spots on wooden benches in room 1523, from as early as 8am. Attendees can watch the video and listen to the jury selection via two large television screens located in the adjacent room 1530.

Prior to bringing in potential jurors into the courtroom, it is probable that the opposing parties will have a brief discussion regarding unresolved matters. When that concludes, Trump is ready to begin his encounter with possible jury members, who will be evaluated for any prejudices during a selection procedure that will last for at least a week.

The legal matter concerning Trump relates to an accused plan to conceal supposed affairs with Daniels and McDougal before the presidential election in 2016.

According to prosecutors, Trump was charged in the spring of 2023 for lying about his business records in 34 instances. They claimed that between August 2015 and December 2017, he was involved in a "catch-and-kill scheme" with his former lawyer, Michael Cohen. This was allegedly done because Trump was worried that his alleged affairs with Daniels and McDougal could negatively affect his chances in the election.

In 2018, Cohen confessed to federal crimes related to his role in the scandalous cover-up of private information. He transferred a sum of $130,000 to the attorney working for Daniels just 12 days ahead of the highly anticipated election. In an attempt to conceal the transaction, Cohen channeled the money through a decoy company he set up and invested in at a bank located in Manhattan, according to the prosecutors.

Following Trump's victory in the election, he compensated Cohen through a sequence of consistent payments every month. Initially, these payments originated from the Donald J Trump Revocable Trust, which serves as a safeguard for the company's assets named after the president of the United States. Later on, payments to Cohen were sourced from personal accounts belonging to Trump, according to statements made by prosecutors.

According to the Manhattan district attorney's office, Trump presented 11 checks deceitfully and put his signature on nine of them. Prosecutors claimed that the Trump Organization handled these checks as if they were paying for legal services that didn't actually exist, disguising them as payments for those imaginary services.

The prosecutors claimed that by labeling these payments as payment for legal services, he committed a crime of making false entries in a business enterprise's records. They also alleged that Trump did so with the aim to deceive and perpetrate another illegal activity while assisting and hiding the crime.

In connection with the McDougal plan, AMI, the publisher of the National Enquirer magazine, paid her a sum of $150,000. After McDougal's attorney contacted the National Enquirer to sell her story about Trump, AMI contacted Cohen. AMI then negotiated with McDougal to purchase her "limited life rights" concerning her encounter with "any married man." This information comes from an agreement between AMI and federal prosecutors in Manhattan that promises not to prosecute.

As per the prosecutors, it was conveyed by Trump to Cohen that AMI should be reimbursed with money. However, Cohen was of the view that AMI should be reimbursed by way of a company having no real business operations. Nonetheless, it was found out that AMI, which is under the control of David Pecker who is close to Trump, didn't accept the reimbursement after getting an advice from their legal team, as per the Manhattan district attorney's office.

In a different plan to keep something hidden, Pecker discovered that a previous doorman from Trump Tower was attempting to trade information about a possible child Trump had outside of his marriage. To obtain the story, AMI gave the doorman $30,000, according to prosecutors.

The narrative turned out to be false as AMI failed to conduct any inquiry prior to providing the payment. However, Cohen instructed Pecker to keep the doorman bound by the arrangement until after the election. Pecker consented to this, according to the prosecutors.

According to prosecutors, Trump, Cohen, and Pecker made an agreement that started in a meeting at Trump Tower during the summer of 2015, just two months after Trump declared his intention to run for president. At the meeting, Pecker offered to assist with Trump's campaign and vowed to keep a close eye on any harmful news stories about him. He also promised to inform Cohen before any such stories became public.