The Manhattan grand jury tasked with hearing evidence regarding former President Donald Trump's alleged hush-money payment of $130,000 to porn star Stormy Daniels will not meet on Wednesday, two law enforcement officers with knowledge of the matter told Insider.
While criminal charges against Trump are widely expected, the news suggests that any indictment of the former president will not come on Thursday at the earliest.
The grand jury — which meets in secret on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons to look at evidence that prosecutors say point to illegal campaign expenditures — heard from a witness on Monday until 5 pm, which left them little time to discuss anything else.
Jurors may hear from at least one more witness before being asked to vote, people familiar with the matter told The New York Times.
It's not clear why the grand jury did not meet on Wednesday, but scheduling conflicts and other interruptions are a normal cause for delay. However, as Insider notes, it is possible prosecutors are considering a different strategy.
An indictment of Trump is not guaranteed, but prosecutors working for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg have signaled that charges will be coming.
It's unclear when the grand jury may vote on whether to indict the former president but a majority of the 23 grand jurors must vote in favor to bring charges against Trump. Prosecutors must explain any potential charges to the jury before a vote can take place, and since they did not convene on Wednesday, the earliest this can happen is Thursday afternoon.
The pause will likely delay the process into next week, Insider reports. Prosecutors are not allowed to discuss grand jury details and Bragg's office did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Prosecutors are barred from divulging grand jury details; Bragg's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
As CNN reported earlier today, sources close to the matter say that prosecutors are waiting for a witness to potentially come back before proceeding to hold the vote.
Reid: Sources say that prosecutors have been in touch with an attorney for at least one witness, and they signal that they're leaving the door open for that witness to potentially come back.. pic.twitter.com/0QYsQOpWkG
— Acyn (@Acyn) March 22, 2023
Former federal prosecutor Renato Mariotti said that there is not "enough information in the public record to know what to make of the apparent delay in the Manhattan case."
"Based on what we know publicly, there are plenty of loose ends that prosecutors may need to tie up, so delay is not all that surprising," he added on Twitter.
I don’t see enough information in the public record to know what to make of the apparent delay in the Manhattan case.
— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) March 22, 2023
Based on what we know publicly, there are plenty of loose ends that prosecutors may need to tie up, so delay is not all that surprising. https://t.co/IbCKtcss7R
Attorney Brad Moss explained that there "could be any number of issues that led to a delay."
Could be any number of issues that led to a delay, folks. Chill. https://t.co/RaVx0BAGyb
— Bradley P. Moss (@BradMossEsq) March 22, 2023
