A seven-person jury has been seated in the hush money trial against former President Donald Trump in Manhattan. Court was not in session Wednesday, and jury selection will continue Thursday until a panel of 12 New Yorkers and six alternates are selected.
But before anyone was seated Tuesday, jurors went through a questionnaire phase in which the district attorney's office and Trump's attorneys questioned them. As jurors spoke, Trump was seen frequently flipping through the jury questionnaire, often leaning back in his chair.
Trump attorney Todd Blanch challenged several prospective jurors, calling for some to be dismissed because of social media posts.
Remember: Each side has 10 formal strikes to remove a juror from the pool — no questions asked. In cases where either party succeeds in rejecting a potential juror for cause, it need not use a strike.
The prosecution and defense used six preemptive strikes each. This means each side has four attacks left.
These are some of the challenges:
- Trump's team found social media posts by a potential juror referring to Trump as “get him out” and “lock him up.” Judge Juan Merson dismissed a potential juror because of that language.
- Mercen struck another potential juror who admitted to reposting a negative AI video about Trump in March. Trump's lawyers shared a photo of display tables with a Biden-Harris poster and pointed to posts that sold buttons in support of the non-voting political establishment.
- Trump's team challenged another grand jury in 2018 over posts on his Facebook page. He said Trump said things that “I don't care about.” Merson denied the challenge, saying the potential juror was honest about his differences with Trump.
Who are the judges? An oncology nurse, a corporate lawyer, an English teacher: what we know about the seven seated jurors.
Trump and the judge: Merson issued a stern warning to the former president for reacting openly and audibly to one of the potential jurors in court. “I will not be intimidated by any jurors in court,” the judge said after the potential jurors left.
Looking ahead: The next batch of 96 potential jurors was sworn in Tuesday and dismissed until Thursday morning.
