The Trump Cases

How jurors will be picked for Trump’s New York hush money trial

Potential jurors will respond to a detailed questionnaire and answer follow-up questions from prosecutors and defense lawyers

By
April 15, 2024 at 4:00 a.m. EDT
Former president Donald Trump sits with his lawyer Susan Necheles at a hearing in New York City on March 25. (Brendan McDermid/Pool/Reuters)
5 min

The first criminal trial of a former U.S. president is slated to begin Monday with jury selection — the painstaking process of choosing 12 people from a pool of hundreds to deliver a verdict in what may be the most closely watched court case in American history.

It’s a complex, highly choreographed affair that’s likely to take weeks. Prosecutors and defense attorneys will spend long days in the downtown Manhattan courthouse probing prospective jurors for biases, then sparring privately in front of the judge over who should be struck and who should remain.

The dozen jurors and several alternates who are ultimately seated will be tasked with deciding whether Donald Trump — the former president and presumptive 2024 Republican nominee — illegally concealed a hush money payment to adult-film star Stormy Daniels on the eve of the 2016 election.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to the indictment’s 34 felony counts of falsification of business records. The trial is likely to run through early June.

Here’s a breakdown of how jury selection will unfold.

Trump New York hush money case

The latest: The judge overseeing former president Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial in New York said the case would go to trial April 15.

The case: The investigation involves a $130,000 payment made to Stormy Daniels, an adult-film actress, during the 2016 presidential campaign. It’s one of many ongoing investigations involving Trump. Here are some of the key people in the case.

The charges: Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Falsifying business records is a felony in New York when there is an “intent to defraud” that includes an intent to “commit another crime or to aid or conceal” another crime. He has pleaded not guilty. Here’s what to know about the charges — and any potential sentence.

Can Trump still run for president? The short answer, legal experts said, is yes. The U.S. Constitution does not forbid Trump, or anyone else, of serving as president if convicted of a felony.