Donald Trump has become the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a felony after a jury on Thursday found him guilty of all charges related to falsifying business records to hide alleged affairs during his 2016 campaign.
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| Donald Trump speaks at the White House, Thursday, Nov. 5, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) |
The 34-count conviction marks a significant legal blow to Trump, who had evaded criminal charges for decades but could not avoid a guilty verdict in the city that helped elevate him to the presidency.
Despite the conviction, Trump remains eligible to run for president and could still return to the White House if he wins in November. This development, however, plunges the nation into unprecedented territory, as Trump has solidified his position as the presumptive Republican nominee.
His sentencing is scheduled for July 11, just four days before he is expected to be officially nominated at the Republican National Convention.
“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial. The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people, and they know what happened here, and everybody knows what happened here,” Trump stated outside the courtroom after the verdict.
Although Trump could face jail time, first-time offenders for similar charges rarely are incarcerated. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, whose office prosecuted the case, did not specify whether they would seek jail time, stating that prosecutors would convey their intentions through upcoming court filings.
“The only voice that matters is the voice of the jury. And the jury has spoken,” Bragg said.
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| Donald Trump outside the court - CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images |
Judge Juan Merchan, who presided over the case and faced numerous attacks from Trump during the trial, expressed his intention to personally thank the jurors for their service after they reached their verdict following about 11 hours of deliberation. When the verdict was announced, there were audible gasps in the courtroom, while Trump sat largely immobile, occasionally glancing at the jury.
The charges against Trump arose from false reimbursements to Michael Cohen, his former fixer, who paid $130,000 to a porn actor shortly before the 2016 election to keep quiet about her alleged affair with Trump, which he denies.
Prosecutors accused Trump of falsifying 11 invoices from Cohen, 12 general ledger entries, and 11 checks, claiming each constituted lying in New York business records. To secure the felony conviction, prosecutors convinced the jury that the hush money cover-up aimed to conceal or further other crimes, describing it as part of a broader “catch-and-kill” scheme to suppress damaging stories about Trump, violating state and federal election laws.
Over four weeks of testimony, prosecutors built their case with evidence from top 2016 campaign aides, Trump Organization employees, and key witnesses like Cohen and porn actor Stormy Daniels, who testified against Trump.
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| A Trump supporter and an anti-Trump protester fight outside Manhattan Criminal Court, Thursday, May 30, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson) |
The trial drew continuous national attention, extensively covered by cable news, despite the absence of cameras in the courtroom. Trump spent weeks in the Lower Manhattan courtroom, solidifying his legal issues as a central aspect of his campaign.
Throughout the trial, Trump was supported by political allies at the courthouse, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.); Senators JD Vance (R-Ohio) and Rick Scott (R-Fla.); and Representatives Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.).
Following the verdict, the park across from the courthouse was crowded with media and civilians seeking interviews. Some had camped out since the afternoon, while others wandered over. One man wearing a "freedom" shirt pretended to hang himself from a tree before a police officer intervened.
Keith Allen, a 56-year-old New Yorker, expressed his approval of the verdict, stating, “He should’ve never been president the first time around. He’s a criminal.”
Trump is also facing three other sets of criminal charges. Special counsel Jack Smith has indicted Trump in Florida for allegedly mishandling classified documents and in Washington, D.C., for conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has charged Trump for allegedly attempting to subvert the 2020 election in Georgia.
This verdict might be the only one of Trump’s criminal cases to go to trial before the November election. Trump has pleaded not guilty and denies any wrongdoing in the other cases.