The first trial among four criminal prosecutions of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee presents historic challenges for the court, lawyers, and potential jurors. Finding impartial jurors and detecting bias without invading privacy are among the problems faced. There is also the risk of individuals trying to manipulate their way onto the jury for personal agendas or being hesitant to decide against a politician with a large social media following.
hush money case — the first trial among four criminal prosecutions of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. The proceedings present a historic challenge for the court, the lawyers and the everyday citizens who find themselves in the jury pool.Those problems include finding people who can be impartial about one of the most polarizing figures in American life and detecting any bias among prospective jurors without invading the privacy of the ballot box.
Over the last year, writer E. Jean Carroll's sex assault and defamation civil suits against Trump went before juries in a nearby federal courthouse. New York state's fraud lawsuit against the ex-president and his company went to trial without a jury last fall in a state court next door. The process of choosing a jury begins when Merchan fills his New Deal-era courtroom with prospective jurors, giving them a brief description of the case and other basics. Then the judge will excuse any people who indicate by a show of hands that they can’t serve or can’t be fair and impartial, he wrote.
But the approved questionnaire asks, for example, whether someone has “political, moral, intellectual or religious beliefs or opinions” that might “slant your approach to this case." Another query probes whether prospective jurors support any of a half-dozen far-right or far-left groups, have attended Trump or anti-Trump rallies, and have worked or volunteered for Trump or for organizations that criticize him.
“A lot of times you make assumptions, and arguably stereotypes, about people that aren't true, so it’s important to listen to what they say” in court and, if possible, online, says Thaddeus Hoffmeister, a University of Dayton law professor who studies juries.
Jury Selection Trial Presumptive Republican Presidential Nominee Challenges Impartiality Bias Privacy Personal Agenda Social Media
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