Trump's lawyer Blanche: There are a number of the jurors that we have social media posts for very much contrary to what they said. We don't want to confront them openly
Judge: They were not told it is an anonymous jury.
Trump's lawyer Blanche: Juror number 1 has a series of extraordinarily hostile Facebook posts-
Judge: Can I see them?... Was I handed the right thing? The sheet has 2 screen grabs
Merchan: This only shows people and "spread the honking cheer."
Trump's lawyer Blanche: That was election day - it was a celebration of the results of the election.
Prosecutor: There's no reference to the defendant.
Merchan: Show me the bias
Blanche: When the juror was asked for her opinion of Pres Trump, she said nothing. But when he lost the election, they celebrated on Facebook - they got in the car and spread the honking cheer
Justice Merchan: Can you play it for me? Here
Justice Merchan: How do we know this is the juror's account? Just based on name?
Trump's lawyer Susan Necheles: This was an anti-Trump rally.
Justice Merchan: It might be. I'm going to ask her to come in, and allow you to ask her questions. Seat 1, B133.
6/ 👀 👇🏼
Orden:
Merchan admonished Trump, telling Blanche: "Your client was audibly uttering something...I won’t tolerate that. I will not have any jurors intimated in this courtroom. I want to make that crystal clear."
Merchan instructed Blanche to tell Trump to stop such behavior. As Merchan spoke, Trump was slumped in his seat, sitting as though he were in a lounge chair.
Via Rubin: while the juror was about 12 ft from client, your client was audibly saying something in her direction.. "
Justice Merchan: Celebrating the end of the travel ban was one thing. But expressing a desire that Donald Trump be locked up? This case counsel result in jail time, that is, lock up. So I will excuse this juror for cause. Next?
Trump's lawyer Blanche: 330's husband's account, it has a meme of President Trump's head being held.
Justice Merchan: There's an image of Barrack Obama, then your client, and it says, "I don't think this is what they meant by Orange is the new Black."
Trump's lawyer Blanche: We'd like to ask the juror if her family -
Justice Merchan: We're not going to do this. You should have asked, if you have the goods.
Prosecutor: It's humor. It's not a window into their soul
After Steinglass asked the now-dismissed prospective juror whether he still believes Trump should be “locked up,” and the man answered “no,” Trump craned his neck toward the prospective juror and flashed him a smirk, per pooler
ADA Steinglass says that Team Trump's tactic of trolling potential jurors' social media accounts is a "conceptual problem."
Justice Merchan seems to agree, as Trump's third challenge is about an eight-year-old post by the juror's husband. (!)
If an eight-year-old post by the juror's husband is the most disqualifying Trump's legal team can find, Merchan adds, that would reinforce the view that she is qualified.
@artemesia@GottaLaff I heard a former NY prosecutor on MSNBC say that NY State court does not have the foreperson elected. It is always the first person seated who becomes foreperson. Fwiw.
Justice Merchan: I have been handed photos- it says, Trump invites Thai boys to the White House, Thai boys request to return to cage.
Trump's lawyer Blanche: She said she didn't remember if she had posts on Facebook...
Justice Merchan: Bring in Juror B128.
Trump's lawyer Blanche: We want to confirm this is your Facebook
B128: Could be my Instagram. I'd like to say I remember posting it, but I do not. I've stopped posting about politics. It got too vitriolic.
Trump's lawyer Blanche: Do these refresh your recollection?
B128: No. But I probably did.
Justice Merchan: Thank you.
Prosecutor: Unlike the juror who said he wanted to see Mr. Trump locked up, this juror didn't express anything negative, other than disagreement
I'm sure the prosecution is going to do everything they can, and I also trust that the judge is going to do everything they can to ensure this is a fair trial.
But I also know good and well exactly how absolutely brainwashed Trump's supporters are. They literally worship him. They would literally give up their own lives for him. They literally hold him equal or higher to Jesus Christ. That's not an exaggeration. Trump only needs one true believer on the jury to hang it. This is not in the bag.
Sorry if that's dooming, but I think it's also reality. I do not believe the courts are going to save us. We are going to have to beat him in November.
Justice Merchan: I ask you to come back Monday at 9:30 for opening statements... well, my instructions then opening arguments. We will be choosing six more jurors, and some alternates, probably six
Justice Merchan: Those of you remaining, we are not done with you. First we will swear in the group for Thursday morning, so they can go. We may work past 4:30 pm, any hardship? No hands? Counsel, please approach
Justice Merchan: Can the defense confirm that 👉🏼all this [social] media you're using, it's public media?👈🏼
Trump's lawyer Blanche: Very much so.
[Thursday's pool enters - Justice Merchan begins same script he read yesterday]
Justice Merchan: OK, next we will do voir dire with the remaining six. First we'll take a ten minute break.
Of 6 sworn jurors, 1 of their #s corresponds with a woman who was quoted in a pool report saying in court: “Esp in this courtroom he will be treated as anyone else can be treated, and no one is above the law."
Note:
Trump isn't out of peremptories, and his lawyers didn't use 1on her.
Anna Bower:
5th juror is B374.
.. a young Black woman. She said she’s not a political person and doesn’t really care for the news. She said she appreciates Trump’s candor
...worth noting that Todd Blanche succeeded with challenges to two jurors for cause, both based on social media posts his team discovered. (Remember: The defense has the names of prospective jurors, a right conferred on them by law, but the public does not.)
Under questioning by Blanche, one of the prospective jurors disclosed that he knew some of the five teenagers convicted in the 1989 Central Park jogger case, one of the most notorious episodes from Trump’s past.
For their privacy and security, these jurors have been anonymized to the general public. The court proceedings have revealed details about their lives that would provide information about them without disclosing their identities.
👉🏼After staying an hour late, there is now a seventh juror, who is currently being sworn in.
@GottaLaff I worry about the one who gets news from the Daily Mail and Fox News, among legitimate sources. The Daily Mail has been tabloid since before Lennon & McCartney wrote Paperback Writer.
@GottaLaff NFL i find it pretty incredible that there are still people with no strong opinions on trump, i'm almost concerned about their awareness about, like, everything, but i guess they'll have to figure it out. :ablobgrin:
@amyedge@GottaLaff ugh, i guess that makes sense, growing up during the 8 years of Obama with constant made up controversies probably disengaged many, why would you care about people fighting on such petty things.
@amyedge that's pretty scary, they don't see the effect on stuff like health care, climate change, even student debt? I would assume at least some knowledge of these things through the daily show, last week tonight, or similar shows. Or are these a millienal+ thing?
@tshirtman@GottaLaff You can have an opinion about trump, even have an opinion about his guilt, and still be a juror as long as you cam set aside your opinions and render a fair and impartial verdict based on the evidence presented at trial . Even I could do that and I think hes a loathsome toad. Even a loathsome toad can be found innocent by a reasonable doubt
@CaptMorgan@GottaLaff i mean, I already think he's guilty, I could probably be convinced he's not with good evidence, but I'm likely to still want to convict even if the evidence is not as strong as it should be for that.
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