In a landmark decision, a Manhattan jury found former President Donald Trump guilty of all 34 charges of falsifying business records on Thursday, marking the first time in American history a former president has been convicted of a felony.
This unprecedented verdict not only makes Trump the first major-party presidential nominee to be convicted of a crime in the midst of a campaign for the White House, but also means that if he defeats President Joe Biden in November, he will become the first sitting president in history to be a convicted felon.
Legal Proceedings and Reaction
The verdict in the hush money trial was announced after jurors deliberated for nearly 12 hours over two days. The trial revolved around accusations that Trump falsified the repayment records of his former lawyer Michael Cohen to cover up a $130,000 payment Cohen made to adult film star Stormy Daniels, intended to keep her from speaking out about an alleged affair with Trump before the 2016 election. Trump has denied the affair.
“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial. The real verdict is going to be November 5, by the people,” Trump declared after the trial, criticizing the presiding judge and the prosecutor. “We didn’t do anything wrong. I’m a very innocent man,” he insisted, vowing to continue fighting.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat who announced charges against Trump last year, highlighted the historic nature of the case and the conviction during a news conference.
“While Trump is a defendant unlike any other in American history,” Bragg said, the verdict was reached “in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors – by following the facts and the law and doing so without fear or favor.”
Bragg emphasized that the jurors made their decision based solely on the evidence and the law.
“Their deliberations led them to a unanimous conclusion beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant Donald J. Trump is guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, to conceal a scheme to corrupt the 2016 election,” he stated.
Campaign Implications and Future Legal Steps
Throughout the seven-week trial, the district attorney’s office presented 20 witnesses to demonstrate how the hush-money payment to Daniels was part of a broader pattern of payoffs designed to suppress negative stories about Trump before the election. The prosecution’s key witness, Cohen, described how Trump directed him to pay Daniels and then approved the scheme to repay him in $35,000 monthly installments in 2017, which were “grossed up” to account for taxes Cohen would have to pay.
Judge Juan Merchan set Trump’s sentencing date for July 11, 2024, just days before the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Trump’s attorney, Todd Blanche, has indicated that they will “vigorously fight” in post-trial motions, and if unsuccessful, will appeal following the sentencing.
In the political arena, reactions were swift. President Biden responded by emphasizing the importance of defeating Trump at the ballot box.
“There’s only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: At the ballot box,” Biden wrote on X, linking to a fundraising page. His campaign stressed the stakes of the 2024 election, with campaign communications director Michael Tyler stating, “The threat Trump poses to our democracy has never been greater.”
Trump’s campaign quickly moved to capitalize on the verdict, framing the case as a “political Witch Hunt trial.” House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed this sentiment, calling the case “a purely political exercise, not a legal one” on X.
The conviction underscores a turbulent period in American politics, where the legal troubles of a former president are directly intertwined with the upcoming presidential election.
The ultimate impact of this historic verdict will be determined by the voters in November, as they weigh the significance of a guilty verdict delivered by 12 ordinary New Yorkers against the backdrop of a fiercely contested presidential race.
