Donald Trump is the first US president to be tried on criminal charges – and could face prison if convicted. Trump allegedly falsified the financial transaction behind the $130,000 hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels. He denies 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in spring 2023.
Following closing arguments in court by the defense and prosecution, it’s expected that jury deliberations will begin on Wednesday. Here’s what you need to know about the case.
29 May: what’s happening today
Jury deliberations are poised to begin Wednesday after Judge Juan Merchan instructs jurors on the law. Merchan’s directives on the law are intended on guiding jurors about how they are supposed to weigh the case.
A jury of 12 people empaneled for the first criminal trial of a former president in US history is made up of seven men and five women who live in different parts of Manhattan, including the Upper East Side, Harlem, Hell’s Kitchen and the West Village.
If jurors reach a verdict, they will determine whether he is guilty or not guilty.
If Trump is found guilty, Trump faces the prospect of jail – albeit unlikely – when he’s sentenced.
Trump is charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in relation to paying off Daniels before the 2016 election. Trump is the first US president, former or present, to face a criminal trial. Trump has denied the charge against him.
Key characters and facts
Trump hush-money trial status: Trump pleaded not guilty; the trial began on 15 April 2024.
Charges: 34 felony charges of falsifying business records.
Hush-money case summary: The case involves a hush-money scheme during the 2016 presidential election. Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen paid $130,000 to the adult film star Stormy Daniels to quash her story about an alleged extramarital affair with the former president. Trump has denied the affair took place. Prosecutors accuse the former president of illegally reimbursing Cohen for the hush-money payment by falsely classifying the transaction, executed by the Trump Organization, as legal expenses.
Verdict before election? Likely.
Key moments in the trial so far
28 May: Trump lawyer gives jurors “10 reasons” to acquit – key takeaways from the closing arguments.
21 May: Trump’s lawyers rested their defense, without the former president himself testifying.
14 May: Michael Cohen, the star witness in the hush-money trial, walked through key elements of the case as defense lawyers sought to undermine his credibility.
13 May: Cohen testified that Trump had been intimately involved in the hush-money deal and received real-time updates on Daniels.
10 May: Trump appeared frustrated in court while possible Cohen testimony loomed.
9 May: Trump attorneys sought to cast doubt on the account of the alleged tryst – but Daniels refused to concede any inconsistencies.
7 May: Daniels undercut some of Trump’s defenses as his lawyer suggested Danield has a propensity to embellish.
6 May: Prosecutors moved on to the alleged falsification of business records to cover up hush-money payments to Daniels, after previously calling witnesses who described a conspiracy to kill the story.
3 May: Hope Hicks took the stand, describing 2016 Trump campaign staffers’ panic when a recording emerged in which Trump bragged about groping women and the former president’s complete control over the campaign.
2 May: Keith Davidson, a lawyer who negotiated payments, testified.
30 April: Trump is fined $9,000 over gag order violations as the judge warned of jail time.
26 April: David Pecker’s testimony presented a granular look into a hush-money scheme that prosecutors allege was meant to sway the 2016 election in the real estate mogul’s favor.
25 April: Pecker testified about his role in buying a story from the model Karen McDougal about an alleged affair with Trump.
23 April: Pecker, the National Enquirer publisher, said he was Trump’s “eyes and ears” during the 2016 election campaign.
22 April: In its opening statement, the prosecution said Trump “orchestrated a criminal scheme to corrupt the 2016 presidential election” in his efforts to cover up an alleged affair with the adult film star Stormy Daniels.
19 April: The court finally chose all 18 jurors.
18 April: Twelve jurors were selected after two seated jurors were removed earlier in the day.
15 April: Trump’s hush-money trial began. He is the country’s first president to face a criminal trial.
