Former President Calls Verdict ‘a Disgrace’ After Being Convicted on All 34 Counts
Donald Trump has been found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in a criminal hush-money scheme aimed at influencing the outcome of the 2016 election.
The verdict was reached after a jury deliberated for less than 12 hours in the unprecedented first criminal trial against a US president, current or former. This marks a perilous political moment for Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, whose poll numbers have remained steady throughout the trial but could plummet at any moment.
Trump was convicted by a jury of 12 New Yorkers of felony falsification of business records, which involves making or causing false entries in records with the intent to commit a second crime. He will be sentenced on July 11 at 10 am ET.
“This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt,” Trump said at the courthouse after the verdict was read. “This was a rigged trial, a disgrace.”
Trump’s lawyer, Todd Blanche, stated during an appearance on CNN that he will appeal the verdict “as soon as we can.”
For Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the verdict was an astonishing victory, especially after skepticism about the wisdom of bringing such a case and the huge risks involved.
Bragg said after the verdict: “Twelve everyday jurors vowed to make a decision based on the evidence and the law and the evidence and the law alone. Their deliberations led them to a unanimous conclusion beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant Donald J. Trump is guilty.”
He added: “While this defendant might be unlike any other in American history, we arrived at this trial and ultimately today this verdict in the same manner as every other case.”
Joe Biden’s campaign responded to the verdict with the message that “no one is above the law.”
“In New York today, we saw that no one is above the law. Donald Trump has always mistakenly believed he would never face consequences for breaking the law for his own personal gain,” wrote Michael Tyler, Biden’s communications director.
“But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”
In the Trump case, the Manhattan district attorney’s office alleged Trump falsely recorded the reimbursements he made to his former lawyer Michael Cohen, who paid the adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 for her silence about her affair with Trump, as “legal expenses.”
The prosecution claimed the falsifications were made to conceal Trump’s violation of New York state election law, which criminalizes promoting the election of any person to office through unlawful means.
Prosecutors argued that the $130,000 payment to Daniels constituted an illegal campaign contribution because it was made solely to benefit Trump’s 2016 campaign and exceeded the $2,700 individual contribution cap.
Prosecutors called 20 witnesses who, over the course of four weeks, provided evidence of how Trump plotted with tabloid mogul David Pecker and lawyer Michael Cohen to suppress accounts of affairs with Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal.
The witnesses, ranging from Trump allies to outspoken critics, testified that Trump’s concern over the Daniels story grew after the October 2016 release of the infamous Access Hollywood tape, in which Trump was caught on a hot mic bragging about sexual assault.
The recording featured Trump boasting about being able to grab women “by the pussy” without their consent because he was famous. Trial witnesses testified that the Trump campaign worried his efforts to dismiss the tape as “locker-room talk” would fail if more boorish behavior came to light.
When the Daniels story threatened to surface weeks before the 2016 election, Cohen acted quickly, paying Daniels $130,000 to buy the exclusive rights to her story and suppress its publication.
After the 2016 election, prosecutors argued, Cohen arranged an illicit repayment plan in which he would be paid $420,000, an inflated sum that “grossed up” for tax purposes the $130,000 and other items Cohen billed.
The trial saw prosecutors call Cohen, Daniels, and a parade of Trump’s confidants and employees to testify, aiming to prove that Trump concealed the alleged payoff scheme to avoid losing support from female voters.
Cohen proved to be a key witness for the prosecution. He recounted using a home equity loan to raise the $130,000 he wired to Daniels’ lawyer through a shell company. He testified that he did so believing Trump would reimburse him.
In January 2017, Cohen discussed repayment for the $130,000, an overdue bonus, and other campaign-related expenses with Trump and the former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg.
Cohen presented 11 invoices seeking payment under a non-existent legal “retainer,” resulting in 11 checks being issued to him and 12 “legal expense” entries in the Trump Organization’s ledger, totaling 34 alleged falsifications.
Cohen, the prosecution’s final witness, recalled Trump’s fury when Daniels was about to go public. Trump, concerned about his image among women voters, instructed Cohen to resolve the issue, saying, “Just take care of it. This was a disaster, a fucking disaster. Women will hate me.”
When prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked Cohen if he would have made the payment without Trump’s approval, Cohen replied, “No, because everything required Mr Trump’s sign-off. And on top of that, I wanted the money back.”
Cohen testified that he submitted bogus invoices for legal services to cover up the reimbursements, repeatedly stating that Trump was the mastermind behind the Daniels payoff. He executed the payment “to ensure that the story would not come out and would not affect Mr. Trump’s chances of becoming president of the United States.”
In a pivotal moment, Cohen recounted a meeting on 8 February 2017 with Trump in the Oval Office where they discussed money. Cohen had not yet been reimbursed for the payoff. “I was sitting with President Trump, and he asked me if I was OK, if I needed money, and I said, ‘No, all good,’” Cohen told jurors. “He said, ‘All right, just make sure you deal with Allen.’”
“Allen” referred to Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s CFO at the time, who was recently jailed for lying at Trump’s civil fraud trial. Weisselberg had previously pleaded guilty to tax crimes and was also incarcerated for those offenses.
Cohen submitted $35,000 monthly invoices, listing them as for legal services. He explained that these invoices were actually for “the reimbursement, to me, of the hush-money fee along with [another expense] and the bonus.”
Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger meticulously reviewed every invoice and payment document with Cohen, asking whether each was for legal services or false. Cohen consistently confirmed that the descriptions in the invoices, emails, and business documents were false.
Cohen emphasized, “What I was doing was at the direction of and for the benefit of Mr. Trump.” He reiterated multiple times how every action required Trump’s approval, stating, “Everything required Mr. Trump’s sign-off.”
Stormy Daniels’ lawyer expressed her relief that the case is finally closed, emphasizing her faith in the justice system and the jurors’ commitment to their duty. This sentiment echoed President Biden’s assertion that no one is above the law.
During her testimony, Daniels provided detailed accounts that contradicted Trump’s denials of their encounter following a celebrity golf event nearly two decades ago. She described how Trump repeatedly questioned her about her work as an adult film actor and made inappropriate comments about his wife Melania.
According to Daniels, Trump made advances toward her in his hotel room, which she found unsettling. Despite her attempts to leave, he allegedly persisted, implying that he could help improve her situation.
The uncomfortable nature of Daniels’ testimony underscored Trump’s efforts to suppress the story and hide his actions. Prosecutors argued that this scheme may have played a role in Trump’s election victory.
The trial shed light on the lengths to which Trump and his associates went to conceal the truth, highlighting the importance of accountability and upholding the rule of law.
