A jury of 12 and 6 alternates has been selected for former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York City on charges of falsifying business records related to hush money payments made during the 2016 campaign.
Opening arguments are scheduled for next week.
“The whole world is watching this New York scandal,” Trump said. “It is political and it is a shame—it is a shame.”
The trial, presided over by Judge Juan Merchan, centers on whether payments made to Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal to prevent them from speaking about alleged past affairs with Trump amounted to campaign finance violations or other crimes.
Prosecutors allege Trump directed business records to be altered to conceal the true nature of the payments, which could have influenced the election outcome.
Key witnesses include Trump’s former attorney Michael Cohen, who arranged the payments.
The selection process saw one juror excused after revealing connections to figures involved in the case that raised impartiality concerns.
“I feel so nervous and anxious right now,” the juror said.
She added, “I don’t want to waste the court’s time.”
“I thought I could do this. This is so much more stressful than I thought it was going to be.”
The trial is expected to last around two months.
