Three days ahead of the start of the first criminal trial of a former U.S. President, the judge presiding over the case denied a motion made by Donald Trump’s legal team aiming to delay the proceedings. In Judge Juan Merchan’s decision issued on Friday, he dismissed a motion from Trump’s legal team seeking a delay due to extensive pretrial publicity.
Merchan wrote,
The remedy that Defendant seeks is an indefinite adjournment. This is not tenable. The situation Defendant finds himself in now is not new to him and at least in part, of his own doing.
Merchan blamed Trump for generating media publicity amid the criminal case by making public statements near the courtroom and posting on social media.
He wrote,
Defendant appears to take the position that his situation and this case are unique and that the pre-trial publicity will never subside. However, this view does not align with reality. In just the past 12 months, Defendant has very publicly been involved in a multitude of criminal and civil cases across several states in both federal and state jurisdictions. In this County alone, Defendant has had two civil trials, one in State Court and the other in Federal Court. In those two matters, he was personally responsible for generating much, if not most, of the surrounding publicity with his public statements, which were often made just a few steps outside the courtroom where the the proceedings were being conducted, and with his unrelenting media posts attacking those he perceived to be responsible for his plight.
In his order, Judge Merchan stated that concerns about a potential juror’s awareness of the case through media coverage can be addressed effectively through a thorough jury selection process, writing,
There are numerous measures available to courts to minimize the potential prejudicial impact that pre-trial publicity can have on a defendant’s right to a fair trial. These measures include, but are not limited to, instituting so-called “gag orders”, extensive examination during voir dire and appropriate jury instructions. >
Trump’s attorneys requested to file the motion for a delay at a pre-trial hearing last month. Although Judge Merchan had previously denied a similar attempt, he granted the request to file the motion.
On Friday, Trump’s lawyers requested a minor adjustment to the jury selection process to allow for more flexibility in questioning potential jurors about political biases. Additionally, they sought information on the number of jurors who have indicated they cannot be fair or impartial towards Trump.
Trump’s defense attorneys wrote,
These figures are extremely significant to assessing the constitutional and statutory adequacy of the jury selection process.
Trump’s lawyers continue to seek a change of venue to move the upcoming trial out of deep-blue Manhattan to Staten Island. Merchan’s ruling follows a pattern of recent court decisions denying a flurry of legal motions filed in New York’s courts from Trump’s legal team this week.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records in connection with payments made before the 2016 election to pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels. Jury selection is scheduled to begin on Monday.
