Starting a new thread 🧵 #TrumpTrial #Trump #legal 1/...
Via Inner City Press (I call him Press):
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
2/ Press:
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
3/ Press:
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.
4/ 👀👇🏼
Klasfeld:
When Trump's lawyer questioned a juror about Facebook posts, the 👉🏼former president reacted audibly and visibly.👈🏼
After she leaves, Justice Merchan angrily warns him via his lawyer:
❗️👉🏼"I will not have any jurors intimidated in this courtroom. I want to make that crystal clear."
5/ Klasfeld:
One of the posts appeared to show an outdoor celebration circa the 2020 election.
"It's a full-on dance party at 96th St.," one of the captions said.
The juror said the video reminded her of COVID-era "cheer" sessions of healthcare workers, in what she called a "New York City celebratory moment."
Merchan rejected the for-cause challenge by Trump's defense, calling the juror's explanation "credible."
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.. "
7/ Via Press:
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?
8/ Press:
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
9/ Via Orden:
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
10/ Klasfeld:
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.
11/ Pagliery:
After six preemptory challenges from both sides, judge says we now have at least three jurors.
Tyler McBrien:
Our count so far, according to Merchan:
Seat 4 becomes Juror 1 and foreperson.
Seat 5 becomes Juror 2.
Seat 12 becomes Juror 3.
12/ Klasfeld:
Also stricken for cause:
Juror in seat No. 6, who apparently posted an AI video of Trump saying, "I'm dumb as f***."
A woman in seat 16 apparently posted the following, date uncertain, on social media:
"Republicans projected to pick up 70 seats in prison."
Trump's lawyers press a for-cause challenge.
13/ Press:
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.
14/ Press:
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
15/ Pagliery:
Breaking news:
"We have six jurors who have been selected," Justice Merchan just declared.
We're about 1/3 of the way there. In total, there must be 12 people plus a few alternates.
16/ Klasfeld:
Things are speeding up during day two of jury selection.
* The defense has used six peremptory challenges so far.
* Prosecutors have used four.
Via Lisa Rubin:
For now, Judge Merchan intends to bring back the original six on Monday, meaning he anticipates we could have all 18 by then.
17/ Via Anna Bower:
The first six jurors in Trump’s criminal trial are being sworn in.
Per pool, juror B400 will serve as the foreperson.
Here’s what we know about B400, per yesterday’s pool report:
18/ Press has more on the above:
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
19/ Press:
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
20/ TO THOSE WHO KEEP ASKING:
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.
21/ Klasfeld:
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
22/ Via Lisa Rubin:
...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.)
@GottaLaff
NFL
This attitude is one I keep.comimg across among young black NYC people. Ds should be wallpapering Harlem and The Bronx with better messaging.
NFL
"We're not done with you" is pretty much the new civics motto for being an engaged American citizen.
NFL
Do we know how the News question is asked?
Is it an open-ended list ...or a given list and an instruction circle/check those you have read (in last X period? )
I feel like this could change people's answers somewhat.
NFL.
Have to say, I really thought Trump's team would be more successful at dragging this out.
Maybe Borgon's (Barron's) graduation is really important to him, after all 😶
I thought juries elected their foreperson? Maybe they do things differently in NY.
Interesting that the judge is designating the foreperson. The only experience I've had is where the jury picks its own. I'm trying to imagine how this is better.
At the very least, they should have an opportunity to refuse, don't ya think?
NFL
Not knowing the process, I'm thinking this may be provisional, open to being changed upon cause. And the definition of 'cause' may be very broad.
@theothersimo @MarkRDavid @GottaLaff
NFL
Same here. Now, I can see the strength in doing it that way, but I've just never seen it. I guess in a case this large (I'm sorry, I was thinking of Trump and had to correct 'lard' to large. really), the judge has the best view of who might be more capable, and avoids a 'beauty contest.' And as a conduit to the bailiff, anyone would do. Where it really comes into play is how a foreperson manages the deliberations. A lesser skilled person might create conflicts in the room.
@skydog @theothersimo @GottaLaff
Can't think how this would have been called on the judge's evaluation, since he doesn't have his full 12 yet...
I agree very much on your management skill point. Needs to avoid pointless conflict - and when it inevitably develops, manage it to resolution.
In Juror 1's situation, I'd be throwing up my hands saying, "Hell no, man! Anyone but me!" 😱
(Then, knowing myself, I'd probably sit there silently criticizing whomever did get the job... 
)
@MarkRDavid @theothersimo @GottaLaff
NFL
Perhaps not the 'best' candidate, but what's called the 'satisfice' decision, picking the first person he feels suffices in the role. Satisfice decisions are normally made with intent to revisit and improve the decision later.
"I'm trying to imagine how this is better."
Well, it does speed the jury's deliberations a bit, and in some scenarios having a random juror as foreperson is better than having some who wants the role. Of course, this motivates attorneys to use up their peremptory challenges early on jurors they know will be foreperson, which speeds up later jury selection.
So.... tRumps base?
@dave @GottaLaff NFL
So what happens if they exhaust this jury pool without seating a jury? Just go and get more? The process takes as long as it takes?
@ralfmaximus @GottaLaff yeah, pretty much. My experience in LA was that there is usually a jury room fulla ornery people stuck waiting to be herded into a courtroom
Fun fact: the sheriffs deputies kept close eye on the TV in the jury room that was blasting at "Grandma Volume" all day. Why?
Had to leap to change the channel if Maury Povich came on, because inevitably "the jurors just start beating on each other" and the deputies kept having to pepper-spray jury pools https://nypost.com/2022/04/01/maury-povich-youre-the-father-of-tvs-wacky-paternity-tests/
That's the idea, to disqualify so many jurors that they can establish a basis for venue change. That the court has already qualified three jurors is heartening. It'll likely go faster as the defense runs low on de novo attacks on jurors.
The defense was given a single printed list of the names and ordered to turn it in every night and not copy it. Now, while they can't use electronic devices in the courtroom, nothing stops someone from going out in the hall and doing it there. Or from a cafe across the street. And once a juror's name is in your browser search history, well... But it does likely result in some very silly challenges.
As for trust, nobody trusts these shady assclowns, least of all the judge. No legal proceeding is perfect, and sometimes compromises must be made. The defendant has rights.
@dave @artemesia @GottaLaff NFL my bigger question is are these people really posting publicly?! Or do they have special insider access to the account posts?
Though I suppose likes in public posts would give a lot away, considering how much FB shoves posts in your face that you didn't ask for
I assume these challenges result from bringing up and/or searching public profiles. The jurors are not on trial here. It does suggest that if one is called for jury duty one might want to make one's locateable social media private before call day. Gives you a little more agency in whether or not you are selected. But even making the account private does not hide posts from folks who have responded to your posts.
And we are up to 7 now!
They need 18. Easily doable by the end of the week.
@GottaLaff NFL
> Just based on name?
Would not be surprised to learn Trump's crack legal team googled a juror's name and clicked on the first result.
Laffy
Jenny Fx
Leefeller Guy
Chris Who
Catherine Schmidt
MarkRDavid
Artemesia
Christine Olson
Stu Duerson, machina exo deus
arceuthobium
Steve Portigal
jmccabe
David LaFontaine
RalfMaximus
Marc Geffen
i.grok
Edelruth, PBS Passport Holder
Fenix🔥 Resistance Starts NOW