Trump Takes Phone Call In Court As Hush Money Trial Kicks Off

Former US President Donald Trump appeared at the Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday and answered a brief phone call after he entered the courtroom. Seven people have been selected from a pool of potential jurors, with a detailed examination of their backgrounds conducted to ensure an impartial panel for the trial of a former president and a likely contender for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination.

Donald Trump, who is facing criminal charges for allegedly making illegal payments to Stormy Daniels, tried to 'intimidate' the Jurors in the courtroom on Tuesday. Judge Merchan scolded Trump's Attorney and further suggested that his client should not come in the way of an impartial hearing.

On the second day of the historic hush money trial, the seven jurors finalised by the New York court included a teacher, two corporate lawyers, an IT expert, an oncology nurse, a salesperson, and an engineer. Before the trial takes swing, the jurist's next challenge is to fill another five vacant seats in the jury along with six replacements.

Trump's lawyers earlier alleged that the trial was unfair. The Republican tycoon also called it a witchhunt by the Democrats multiple times. The 77-year-old's attorneys applied heavy scrutiny on the members of the jury, keeping an eye on who was getting selected.

At the conclusion of the second day of the Donald Trump hush money trial, seven potential jurors had made it through a 42-question survey, a 30-minute prosecutorial grilling, and an additional 30-minute round of questioning from the defense. Some had received glares or their social media posts examined by the defendant.

The hush money case involves allegations of Trump falsifying his company's internal records to hide the true nature of payments to his former lawyer Michael Cohen. Notably, Cohen allegedly helped Trump bury negative stories during his 2016 presidential campaign. It was also alleged that Cohen paid porn actor Stormy Daniels USD 130,000 to suppress her claims of an extramarital sexual encounter with Trump years earlier.

Trump had pleaded not guilty last year to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He denied having sexual relations with Daniels. Trump's lawyers argue the payments to Cohen were legitimate legal expenses and not part of any cover-up.