Trump OR AGAIN – On Thursday, 7 men and 5 women were sworn in to decide his fate in the criminal trial in Manhattan.
New York. “We have our jury.” It is 4:30 p.m. in the courtroom, on the fifteenth floor Of the Manhattan courthouse, when Judge Juan Merchan announces that he has succeeded in obtaining the 12 jurors necessary to decide the fate of Donald Trump. It’s a surprise because this day – the third of the trial – had started very badly. In the morning, the magistrate had asked the 96 “prospective jurors” gathered in the room to declare straight away if they felt “impartial” towards the former president: 48 people raised their hands and left the room. In Manhattan, which voted 85% for Joe Biden in the last presidential election, it is difficult to find objective and detached minds in relation to the Donald Trump “case”.
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The judge also announced that two of the seven jurors who were sworn in during the previous hearing were finally “excused”. Juror number two, a nurse, made the request after being bombarded with requests from those close to her: the portrait of her that appeared in the press was a little too similar to her. His anonymity was threatened. She preferred to forfeit. The other juror (number 4), an information technology consultant, who called Donald Trump “fascinating and mysterious,” was “unplugged” after the prosecution discovered he was arrested in the 90s for ripping up conservative political ads, which he failed to declare. No question of taking the risk of a formal defect in the trial: the juror was replaced by a security engineer, born in California, who flees social networks.
Seven men, five women, mostly qualified and generally in good positions
In the end, the twelve members of the jury reflect New York. Seven men, five women, mostly qualified and generally in good positions. Among them: a retired wealth manager, a physiotherapist, a banker, a speech therapist, etc. Juror number 11 turns out to be particularly ill-disposed towards the former president: this executive working on product development in a multinational thus affirmed “not having strong opinions, but not liking the personality » from Donald Trump, who sat opposite her, impassive. “He seems very selfish and self-centered,” she added, saying “his integrity and the way he presents himself was not her cup of tea.” Susan Necheles, defense attorney, then intervened: “You sound like you’re saying you don’t like him.” The interested party confirmed but was nevertheless selected to be part of the jury.
To convict him, unanimity of the jury is required
Facing her, Donald Trump will perhaps be able to count on juror number 2, the one who replaces the nurse. He is an investment banker who follows the former president on his social network Truth and has read extracts from “the art of the deal”, his first bestseller.
Another juror who could potentially be favorable to her: number 5, a young black woman who claims to “not be interested in politics or current affairs”. She says she appreciates his frankness: “President Trump speaks without embellishment and I prefer that to someone about whom we don’t know what he thinks.” Of all the jurors, she is the only one to declare that before this hearing , she was not aware of the criminal charges against the former master of the White House. To the extent that the charge is based on complex legal theory, this ignorance may help the defendant. To convict him, the unanimity of the jury is required. It is therefore enough for only one of its members to fail to cancel the trial. Which would be a godsend for Donald Trump.
