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NEW YORK — A New York jury found Donald Trump guilty Thursday of falsifying documents to cover up bribery of a porn star to silence him before the 2016 election, making Trump the first U.S. president to be convicted of the crime.
After two days of deliberations, the 12-member jury announced that they had found Trump guilty of all 34 charges he faced. Any verdict requires unanimous consent.
The ruling plunges the United States into uncharted territory ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election, when Republican candidate Trump will try to wrest the White House from Democratic President Joe Biden.
Trump, 77, has denied any wrongdoing and is expected to appeal.
He faces a maximum sentence of four years in prison, but others convicted of the crime typically receive shorter prison sentences, fines or probation. The jail term would not prevent him from running for office or from taking office if elected.
Polls show Trump and 81-year-old Biden are tied, Reuters/Ipsos poll found it A guilty verdict could cost Trump the support of some independent and Republican voters.
Later in the day, Justice Juan Merchan, who is presiding over the case, summoned lawyers for both sides and Trump at 4:15 p.m. (GMT) to tell them he planned to dismiss the jury at 4:30 p.m. He then left the courtroom.
About 20 minutes later, he returned to the courtroom and informed both parties that the jury had delivered a note signed by the jury foreman at 4:20 pm indicating that the jury had reached a verdict. He said the jury requested another 30 minutes to fill out the verdict form.
A jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business documents after a five-week trial during which porn star Stormy Daniels gave revealing testimony about a sexual relationship she had with Trump in 2006, when he was still married to his current wife, Melania. Trump has denied having sex with Daniels.
Trump’s then-fixer Michael Cohen testified that Trump approved a $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels in the final weeks of the 2016 election, when Daniels was facing multiple allegations of sexual misconduct.
Cohen testified that he processed the payments and that Trump approved a plan to reimburse him with monthly payments disguised as legal work. Trump’s lawyers have attacked Cohen’s credibility, highlighting his criminal record and incarceration and his history of lying.
Falsifying business documents is normally a misdemeanor in New York, but prosecutors in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office elevated it to a felony on the grounds that Trump concealed illegal campaign contributions.
Trump complained that he would not get a fair trial in his strong Democratic home state.
The case is widely seen as the least consequential of the four criminal prosecutions Trump has faced. Jurors heard testimony about sexual misconduct and lies that has been public since 2018, even though the charges themselves are based on Cohen’s ledgers and other expense records.
The case has been dubbed the “zombie case” because Bragg reopened it after his predecessor chose not to press charges.
This case may also be the only one to go to court before the election, as other cases have been delayed due to procedural issues.
If elected, Trump could dismiss two federal cases alleging he illegally tried to overturn his 2020 election defeat and mishandled classified documents after he leaves office in 2021. But he would have no power to stop another case in Georgia seeking to subvert the election.
Trump has pleaded not guilty in all the cases and has portrayed his various legal troubles as attempts by Biden’s Democratic allies to hurt him politically.
(Reuters)
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