Trump trial live: Opening statements set to begin Monday after a tense week of jury selection

Trump trial live Opening statements set to begin Monday after a tense week of jury selection
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Trump appears in court for fourth day of hush money trial

After a tense week of jury selection, Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial truly gets underway on Monday morning with opening statements from the prosecution and defence.

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The 12 jurors and six alternates will then begin hearing evidence against the former president and his counterargument before ultimately deciding his fate.

Judge Juan Merchan is also expected to rule on whether Mr Trump’s previous misconduct and court cases can be included in proceedings.

Mr Trump spent much of the weekend complaining about the case on Truth Social and angrily posting his presidential immunity claims — on which the Supreme Court will hear arguments this Thursday.

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Elsewhere in the myriad of legal issues engulfing the former president, Monday will also see a hearing on whether to cancel Mr Trump’s $175m bond to appeal the civil fraud trial ruling and the public filing of witness statements in the classified documents case.

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A planned rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, was called off at the last minute due to bad weather, with Mr Trump instead sending a recorded message to supporters. Meanwhile, Melania Trump returned to the campaign trail helping the conservative LGBT group the Log Cabin Republicans raise $1m at a Mar-a-Lago dinner.

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How much time could Trump spend in jail if convicted?

Should Mr Trump ultimately be found guilty, he could theoretically face more than a decade in prison, according to CNN chief legal analyst Laura Coates, who points out that the felony counts against Mr Trump are classified as Class E crimes in New York, which are the lowest level felonies in the state.

But there’s more to it than that…

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 06:15

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Trump’s calender of chaos heats up

In a typical presidential election year, candidates will spend the 11 months leading up to election day shaking hands and kissing babies at rallies as the primaries unfold.

Instead, the ex-president will be forced to juggle his campaign for the White House while also defending himself in federal and state courts in four different cases that have hearings and trial dates scattered throughout 2024.

Ariana Baio breaks down what the former president is facing:

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 05:15

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Judge Merchan to rule on what prosecutors can question Trump about if he testifies

Attorneys for Donald Trump told a judge overseeing the former president’s hush money trial on Friday that Manhattan prosecutors are merely trying to “distract” jurors and “pile things on” by introducing evidence from his string of other criminal and civil cases.

New York Justice Juan Merchan presided over a hearing to outline what prosecutors intend to ask Mr Trump if he chooses to testify at his criminal trial, including a defamation case and allegations of sexual abuse, a massive civil fraud judgment finding him liable for tens of millions of dollars, felony convictions targeting his business, and the dissolution of a namesake foundation used to boost his presidential campaign.

But the judge said that prosecutors’ request falls within the grounds of the so-called Sandoval hearing, during which a defendant with a history of misconduct or criminal acts who also plans to testify in his defence knows what they could be walking into.

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 04:15

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NY AG: Trump’s $175m bond in fraud case should be voided

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 03:15

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Trump’s fate is in the hands of 18 New Yorkers: Who are they?

Mr Trump has repeatedly tried, and failed, to move the case out of the borough, where he baselessly smeared the borough as hopelessly biased against him.

And so, during jury selection in the trial, he sat and heard firsthand from a group of Manhattan residents who pledged that they would be fair and impartial in hearing the case against him.

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 02:15

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GOP lawmaker lashes out at Matt Gaetz by branding him a ‘scumbag’ and repeating sex and drug claims

Tony Gonzales of Texas was speaking to CNN when he was asked whether Speaker Mike Johnson would survive a motion to vacate his title being led by several lawmakers on the far right win of his party.

“He will survive,” Mr Gonzales said, before launching into his tirade…

John Bowden reports on what he said:

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 01:45

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Melania Trump makes low-profile return to campaign trail

Melania Trump has returned to the campaign trail to support Donald Trump’s 2024 bid to win back the White House, in an understated at-home event in stark contrast to her husband’s loud, bombastic style.

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 01:15

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Watch: John Legend says of Trump that ‘in the core of his being, he is a racist’

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 00:45

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No, Trump didn’t storm out of court

Donald Trump’s campaign appears to once again be falsely characterising the former president’s exit from his New York criminal trial, claiming that he “stormed” out of the courtroom on Friday.

Oliver O’Connell22 April 2024 00:15

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ICYMI: Trump forced to cancel first public address since New York trial began

Supporters of former President Donald Trump file out of the rally after it was canceled due to threatening weather in Wilmington, North Carolina (AP)

Donald Trump was forced to cancel his scheduled rally in Wilmington, North Carolina, as skies darkened and a rain storm approached the airport.

It was his first planned rally since the start of his criminal hush money trial.

Mr Trump called into the rally site near the Wilmington airport less than an hour before he was scheduled to take the stage and apologised to a few thousand supporters who had gathered throughout.

But only if the weather behaves… (AP)

“I’m devastated that this could happen but we want to keep everybody safe,” MrTrump said, as his message was amplified by speakers to his supporters.

“I think we’re gonna have to just do a rain check. I’m so sad,” Mr Trump said.

Mr Trump promised a “bigger and better” rally to around 7,000 and 8,000 people who had gathered at the Aero Center at Wilmington airport.

Listen to his remarks below:

Oliver O’Connell21 April 2024 23:45



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