New York City – As the historic criminal trial of former President Donald Trump reaches its closing stages, the prosecution and defense have begun making their final arguments to the jury. Trump is facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to a hush-money payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.
The defense started the proceedings on Tuesday with a nearly three-hour argument asserting Trump’s innocence and claiming that he did not break the law. In response, the prosecution delivered its own lengthy closing argument, emphasizing the alleged conspiracy and cover-up orchestrated by Trump. Prosecutors have argued that Trump arranged the hush-money payment to silence Daniels and attempted to conceal the transaction to avoid negative repercussions during his 2016 presidential campaign.
Throughout the trial, nearly two dozen witnesses have taken the stand, marking the first criminal trial against a former US president. The burden of proof lies with the prosecution, who must demonstrate Trump’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. A guilty verdict could result in up to four years of prison time for Trump, although imprisonment for a first-time felon convicted of such a crime is unlikely.
Despite the trial outcome, Trump remains the presumptive Republican nominee for the upcoming November election, where he could potentially challenge President Joe Biden. Recent polls indicate that a felony conviction could potentially sway some of Trump’s supporters away from voting for him.
The case revolves around a $130,000 payment made to Daniels by Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, in the final days of the 2016 election. While Trump denies Daniels’s claim of a sexual encounter in 2006 and argues that the payment was for legal services, prosecutors allege that the transaction was meant to conceal the payment’s real purpose and protect Trump’s reputation during the election.
Both the defense and prosecution have employed various strategies throughout the trial, including discrediting witnesses and highlighting Trump’s celebrity status as a vulnerability to extortion. As the trial moves towards a conclusion, the judge will provide instructions to the jury on the applicable laws and considerations for deliberations. The jury’s decision must be unanimous for a verdict to be reached, with a potential mistrial declared in case of a deadlock.
The outcome of the trial holds significant implications for both Trump’s political future and the public perception of his conduct during the 2016 election. As the proceedings draw to a close, the nation waits anxiously for the jury’s decision in this landmark case.