by Steven Richards
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty Wednesday by a New York jury of falsifying business records for falsifying business records to conceal his reimbursement to Michael Cohen for payments to Stormy Daniels and others ahead of the 2016 election.
Now that the verdict has been delivered, Judge Juan Merchan is expected to sentence Trump in the coming days even as the Republican nominee is preparing for the 2024 presidential election.
The trial of the former president and presumptive Republican nominee has consumed media coverage since it began April 15 and has largely become a central focus of the 2024 presidential election between Trump and his rival, President Joe Biden.
Bragg formally charged Trump in April 2023.
On Tuesday, prosecutors, in final arguments, laid out the theory of their case, that Trump falsely classified the payment to Cohen as attorney’s fees. Bragg charged Trump with falsifying business records because of this alleged misclassification.
The central payment is $130,000 from Trump to Cohen, who allegedly paid Daniels from his own funds, then sought reimbursement. The prosecutors say the payment was part of a conspiracy to help Trump win the 2016 presidential election by burying potentially damaging information.
Trump’s lawyer argued the non-disclosure agreement with Daniels was “perfectly legal” and that it would be difficult to say the payment to Cohen was a reimbursement for the hush money, considering he was paid more than the money he provided to Daniels.
Todd Blanche, Trump’s lead defense lawyer, spent his closing argument highlighting what he considered the 10 reasons why the jury should have reasonable doubt that Trump is guilty of the charges. Blanche focused heavily on Cohen’s credibility, considering he has already pleaded guilty to tax and campaign contribution violations.
The prosecution spent most of its time in closing arguments rehashing the case that it presented to jurors during the trial, highlighting witness testimony and documents and explaining its charge, that the entire case centers around a “conspiracy and a cover up” to “corrupt the 2016 election,” and reiterating that the case is about Trump’s actions, not Cohen’s.
“This case is not about Michael Cohen. It’s about Mr. Trump and whether he should be held accountable for making false business entries in his own business records. Whether he and his staff did that to cover up election interference,” prosecutor Joshua Steinglass told the jury.
The jury appeared to have bought the prosecution’s arguments that Trump had knowledge of the payment and directed it and false records entries.
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Steven Richards is a reporter for Just the News.
Photo “Donald Trump” by Dan Scavino Jr.
