Donald Trump’s longtime lawyer has warned that New York jurors in his hush-money case could be infected with ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ by liberal friends and families over the holiday weekend.
Closing arguments will begin when court returns Tuesday before the jury is sent to consider its verdict on 34 counts of falsifying business records against the former president.
And Alina Habba, who represented Trump in his civil fraud case, blasted Judge Juan Merchan for not sequestering jurors in a hotel for what could be the final weekend of the six-week trial.
“For them to be able to go out on a holiday weekend with friends and family who have an opinion, who are watching the news, TVs in the background at the pool party, that really worries me,” she told Sean Duffy on Fox. News.
‘If they are left-wing and watch MSDNC, as my client calls it, or CNN, they are not getting fair news.
Alina Habba, who represented Trump in his civil fraud case, warned jurors in his hush money trial could become infected by family members with “Trump Derangement Syndrome” over the Memorial Day long weekend.
Former President Donald Trump is likely to receive a verdict within days on the 34 charges he faces for falsifying company records after court returns Tuesday
“I worry that they’re going to go back to whatever friends may have, the Trump disorder syndrome, forgetting any sense of reality and coming back and sitting in that box and saying, you know what, I gotta do, you know, take one for the DNC.
“I want the law to become true, because if we do that, we will win. We’re not just going to get a hung jury. We will be acquitted.’
The 12 jurors were sworn in on April 22 after three days of wrangling between prosecutors and defense attorneys.
The seven men and five women include a corporate lawyer, an investment banker, a software engineer and a teacher.
When the jury foreman was asked where he gets his news from, he said, among other things, Dailymail.com.
But one of the female jurors called the ex-president “selfish” when questioned about her views in court.
Another said he follows former Trump lawyer and prosecution witness Michael Cohen on social media, as well as Mueller She Wrote, a popular anti-Trump account.
And half of them revealed that they get at least some of their news from the left-wing New York Times.
Trump has claimed that Judge Juan M. Merchan ‘can’t stand me’ and said the trial is a political witch hunt designed to keep him off the campaign trail
Joe Biden is said to be eagerly awaiting a verdict that could make Trump the first former president ever convicted of a crime, which could derail his bid for the White House.
The president has avoided commenting on the case but is expected to give a speech at the White House after the verdict is handed down, the WSJ reported.
And his campaign team plans to refer to the former president as “Convicted Felon Donald Trump” in its communications if the verdict is guilty.
The lawsuit stems from an alleged $130,000 “hush money” payment to former porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election
The case, one of four criminal cases facing Trump, centers on the allegation that he tried to conceal a $130,000 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
It has been labeled by the former president as a political witch hunt designed to keep him off the campaign trail.
It is also the only one likely to go to trial before the general election in November.
Judge Merchan, who has repeatedly clashed with Trump’s defense team and issued a series of gagging orders against the former president, will deliver his instructions to the jury after both sides complete their summaries.
Habba said the instructions serve as the “road map” for the jury and are the most crucial part of the process.
“Judge Merchan is deeply conflicted,” she claimed.
“At this point, I have no confidence whatsoever that this person, who should not be on the bench right now, will appropriately provide jury instructions without any persuasion to the prosecutor.
“The last resort for this prosecution is this judge.”
The former president received an enthusiastic welcome Thursday when he became the first Republican presidential candidate in four decades to hold a rally in the Bronx.
But he could become the first former president ever to be convicted of a crime if a New York jury decides on the 34 charges he faces.
The former president received an enthusiastic reception Thursday when he became the first Republican presidential candidate in four decades to hold a rally in the Bronx.
And the Sunday Morning Futures host told his guest he was more optimistic than she was about the jury.
“I want to tell you something: There’s a silver lining in this, Alina,” Duffy said.
“I don’t want a juror going into Memorial Day weekend on Thursday or Friday, you know what? There’s a party going on. I want to end this matter early.
“I think it could do a lot of good for President Trump, for the people on the jury who understand the law and the facts, to fight for him and for justice.”
