- Opening statements began Monday in Donald Trump’s secret trial.
- Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records in the landmark case.
- “This case involves criminal conspiracy and cover-up,” said ADA Matthew Colangelo.
Opening arguments in former President Donald Trump’s historic criminal trial began Monday with a prosecutor describing the case as a “criminal conspiracy.”
“This case is about criminal conspiracy and cover-up,” Assistant Prosecutor Matthew Colangelo told the 12-person jury.
Prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office allege that Trump illegally falsified business records by concealing a secret $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
The payment was made to Daniels just days before the 2016 presidential election to buy her silence about a sexual relationship with Trump in 2006, prosecutors allege.
“He falsified these business records because he wanted to cover up his and others’ criminal conduct,” Colangelo said of Trump.
Trump wasn’t looking at Colangelo at the start of his opening statement. Rather, he was staring straight ahead from his seat at the defense table.
Interestingly, in describing the reason for hiding the $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, the prosecutor did not reference an “alleged” sexual relationship with the adult film star.
Instead, Colangelo said hush money was paid to ensure voters “did not learn of a sexual relationship with the candidate.”
Before heading to the 15th floor courtroom Monday morning to hear opening statements in the case, Trump ignored a reporter’s shouted question asking where his wife Melania Trump was. Instead, Trump used the opportunity to denounce the accusations against him as a political “witch hunt.”
“I’m here instead of being able to be in Pennsylvania, Georgia and many other places campaigning, and it’s very unfair,” Trump told reporters in the courtroom hallway.
Before the opening, Trump lost his attempt to prevent jurors from seeing the infamous Access Hollywood “catch ’em” transcript.
And much of Trump’s past court losses will be fair game for prosecutors, with the Manhattan district attorney’s office at odds if Trump took the stand.
Prosecutors can cross-examine Trump about his New York civil fraud lawsuit and his losses against E. Jean Carroll, but they cannot question Trump about the total monetary value of the judgments from those lawsuits, which exceeds $500 million. dollars combined.
Additionally, prosecutors may also point out that Trump twice violated his gag order during a fraud trial and was fined $15,000 for doing so.
Finally, prosecutors may address a stipulation with the New York attorney general’s office in which the Trump Foundation was dissolved due to what the presiding judge, New York Supreme Justice Juan Merchan, called Monday a “deal interested” of Trump.
Before the openings, there were some swings from the jurors. The day was shortened by half – to 12:30 p.m. – so that juror number 6, a computer engineer, could make her emergency dentist appointment at 1 p.m. for a toothache.
And the day began with Juror Number 9, a speech therapist, briefly questioned in private after expressing concern about media attention.
“Juror number 9 is going to stay with us, so again, that won’t be a problem,” the judge said after speaking with her for a few minutes in the judge’s locker room.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
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