{"id":2225473,"date":"2024-04-19T16:56:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-19T20:56:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/last-week-in-lawfare-land-jury-selection-dueling-schedules-and-a-big-scotus-case\/"},"modified":"2024-04-19T16:58:43","modified_gmt":"2024-04-19T20:58:43","slug":"last-week-in-lawfare-land-jury-selection-dueling-schedules-and-a-big-scotus-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/last-week-in-lawfare-land-jury-selection-dueling-schedules-and-a-big-scotus-case\/","title":{"rendered":"Recap of the Latest in Lawfare: Jury Selection, Busy Schedules, and a Major SCOTUS Case"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">30<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Flast-week-in-lawfare-land-jury-selection-dueling-schedules-and-a-big-scotus-case%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2225473&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The\u200d article discusses \u2064the legal \u200cbattles \u2063faced by former President \u2062Donald\u200c Trump \u2062as the November 2024 election approaches, covering ongoing criminal\u2063 and civil\u200c cases in various \u2063states.\u2064 It\u200c provides updates\u200d on trials in New York, Georgia, Florida, and Washington D.C., outlining charges, legal proceedings, and recent developments in each case, shedding light on the complex legal\u200b challenges Trump \u2064is navigating.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-content\">\n<p>As the November 2024 election quickly approaches, the lawfare crusade against former President Donald Trump is now entering the trial phase. On Monday, April 15, the first criminal trial of President Trump began in New York City.\u00a0 This will likely soon be followed by trials in Florida and, potentially, in Washington D.C. Along with criminal crusades, President Trump is also battling Attorney General Letitia James\u2019s $454 million civil fraud case on appeal. <\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s the latest information you need to know about each case.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-294957235\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-18be265bd94447453a5141634d514636 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-18be265bd94447453a5141634d514636\"><\/div>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/last-week-in-lawfare-land\/\">Read our previous installments here.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Manhattan, New York: Prosecution by DA Alvin Bragg for NDA Payment<\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this New York state criminal case, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg charged former President Donald Trump in April 2023 with 34 felony charges for alleged falsification of business records. Trump\u2019s former attorney Michael Cohen paid pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 presidential election as part of a nondisclosure agreement in which she agreed not to publicize her claims that she had an affair with Trump (who denies the allegations). Nondisclosure agreements are not illegal, but Bragg <a href=\"https:\/\/manhattanda.org\/district-attorney-bragg-announces-34-count-felony-indictment-of-former-president-donald-j-trump\/\">claims<\/a> Trump concealed the payment to help his 2016 election chances and in doing so was concealing a \u201ccrime.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: The trial began on Monday, April 15. Jury selection was completed on Thursday, April 19. There are a total of 12 selected jurors who will decide President Trump\u2019s fate in this case. The impartiality of the jury is already questionable, as Juror 11 has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2024\/04\/18\/politics\/takeaway-day-3-trump-hush-money-trial\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">stated<\/a>, \u201cI don\u2019t like his persona. \u2026 He just seems very selfish and self-serving so I don\u2019t really appreciate that in any public servant.\u201d While President Trump\u2019s attorneys attempted to remove Juror 11, Judge Merchan refused the request and allowed Juror 11 to stay on the jury. <\/p>\n<p>On Friday April 19, Judge Merchan selected five additional alternate jurors. Now, the opening arguments in this case could begin as soon as Monday, April 22.<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-09185623f24157559ddcdd89a00eeec8 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-09185623f24157559ddcdd89a00eeec8\"><\/div>\n<p>Judge Merchan has issued a gag order on President Trump generally prohibiting him from publicly speaking on possible jurors, witnesses, and other personnel in this case. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Fulton County, Georgia: Prosecution by DA Fani Willis for Questioning Election Results <\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: The Georgia state criminal case is helmed by District Attorney Fani Willis and her team of prosecutors \u2014 which until recently included Nathan Wade, with whom Willis had an improper romantic relationship. Willis charged Trump in August 2023 with 13 felony counts, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/donald-trump-indicted-fani-willis-says-trump-and-co-conspirators-attempted-to-seize-presidential-term\/\" title=\"Trump indicted: Fani Willis accuses Trump and accomplices of trying to 'take' presidency.\">including racketeering charges<\/a>, related to his alleged attempt to challenge the 2020 election results in Georgia. President Trump is joined by 18 co-defendants, including Rudy Giuliani, Mark Meadows, Sidney Powell, and others. Some of President Trump\u2019s co-defendants have reached plea deals; others have petitioned to have the case removed to federal court, each attempt of which has been denied. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments: <\/strong>Not much news as the Trump team awaits a decision on its appeal of Judge Scott McAfee\u2019s ruling allowing Willis, whose apparent conflicts of interest prompted a separate hearing, to continue prosecuting\u00a0the case.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Southern District of Florida: Prosecution by Biden DOJ for Handling of Classified Documents<\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/terrorism-homicide-prosecutors-brought-in-to-try-capitol-riot-defendants-for-crimes-like-trespassing\/\" title=\"Terrorism, Homicide Prosecutors Brought In To Try Capitol Riot Defendants For Crimes Like Trespassing\">federal criminal case<\/a>, special counsel Jack Smith and federal prosecutors with Biden\u2019s Justice Department <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/06\/09\/biden-doj-indicts-former-president-donald-trump-over-classified-documents-squabble\/\">charged former President Trump in June 2023 with 40 federal charges related to his alleged mishandling of classified documents<\/a> at his Mar-a-Lago residence. The trial is set to begin on May 20, 2024, though this date is expected to be pushed back. Additionally, venue matters: The trial is currently set to take place in Fort Pierce, Florida, in a locality that heavily <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/2020-election\/results\/florida\/\">backed<\/a> President Trump in the 2020 election. If that remains unchanged, the demographics of the jury pool may result in a pro-Trump courtroom.  <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-de76fe0304b4c048d7ec136c50522beb fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-de76fe0304b4c048d7ec136c50522beb\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: President Trump\u2019s attorneys have requested that Judge Cannon delay the May 9 deadline for reviewing classified documents due to President Trump\u2019s ongoing criminal trial in New York. Expectedly, Special Counsel Jack Smith has filed an opposition to President Trump\u2019s request for delay. Judge Cannon is expected to rule on this request in the coming days.  <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Washington, D.C.:\u00a0 Prosecution by Biden DOJ for Jan. 6 Speech<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this federal criminal case, special counsel Jack Smith and federal prosecutors <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/08\/03\/jack-smiths-latest-indictment-is-legally-flawed-and-politically-suspect\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">charged former President Trump in August 2023 with four counts of conspiracy and obstruction<\/a> related to his actions on Jan. 6, 2021. President Trump\u2019s lawyers have argued that immunity extends to actions taken by a president while acting in his official capacity and that, in any event, the First Amendment protects his right to raise legitimate questions about a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/no-thanks-ill-be-skipping-the-inauguration\/\" title=\"No Thanks, I\u2019ll Be Skipping the Inauguration\">questionable election process<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments:<\/strong> This case is currently stalled while awaiting a ruling from the Supreme Court on former President Trump\u2019s immunity claim. The Supreme Court is set to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/major-abortion-groups-assemble-file-lawsuit-over-unthinkable-texas-law-allowing-americans-to-sue-abortion-clinics-doctors\/\" title=\"Major Abortion Groups Assemble, File Lawsuit Over \u2018Unthinkable\u2019 Texas Law Allowing Americans To Sue Abortion Clinics, Doctors\">hear oral arguments<\/a> in that case on April 25, after which it could issue a ruling by the end of the June term. On April 8, Special Counsel Jack Smith submitted a brief to the Supreme Court, urging it to reject President Trump\u2019s immunity claim. If the Supreme Court rules against President Trump, a trial could quickly follow beginning in July or August. <\/p>\n<p>Another case before the Supreme Court could also affect Smith\u2019s prosecution of Trump. In <em>Fischer v. United States<\/em>, Joseph Fischer has asked the court to rule that the Department of Justice is improperly interpreting a statute against \u201cobstruction of an official proceeding,\u201d which was <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Sarbanes%E2%80%93Oxley_Act\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">passed<\/a> to crack down on the destruction of financial records, to go after Jan. 6 defendants. Two of Smith\u2019s charges against Trump also depend on the statute, leading commentators to suggest that if the court rules in Fischer\u2019s favor, it could hamper Smith\u2019s ability to apply the statute to Trump. <\/p>\n<p>As some commentators, including one in The Federalist, have <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/04\/10\/jack-smith-signals-hell-try-to-circumvent-scotus-if-it-says-obstruction-charges-arent-real-crimes\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">highlighted<\/a>, a footnote in Smith\u2019s recently filed brief may portend Smith\u2019s plans to circumvent the court\u2019s forthcoming <em>Fischer<\/em> ruling, should it be decided in Trump\u2019s favor \u2014 leading many to question whether Jack Smith intends to ignore the high court in his pursuit of President Trump. <\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">New York: Lawsuit by A.G. Letitia James\u00a0for Inflating Net Worth<\/h2>\n<p><strong>How we got here<\/strong>: In this New York civil fraud case, Democrat Attorney General Letitia James sued former President Trump in September 2022 under a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/last-week-in-lawfare-land-what-to-know-about-each-legal-crusade-against-trump\/\" title=\"Recap of Recent Legal Battles Against Trump: Key Points to Remember\">civil fraud statute alleging<\/a> that he misled banks, insurers, and others about his net worth to obtain loans, although the loans have been paid back and none of the parties involved claimed to have been injured by the deals. Following a no-jury trial, <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/02\/16\/trump-fined-350-million-in-democrats-latest-gambit-to-rig-the-2024-election\/\">Judge Arthur Engoron issued a decision on Feb. 16, 2024<\/a> ordering Trump to pay a $454 million penalty. Trump has appealed this decision and posted a required <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2024\/03\/26\/trumps-reduced-bond-doesnt-make-letitia-james-election-meddling-lawfare-any-less-scandalous\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">$175 million appeal bond<\/a>. The appeals court plans to hold hearings on the merits of the full case in September 2024. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Latest developments<\/strong>: On April 4, Attorney General James <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2024\/04\/04\/politics\/attorney-general-trump-bond-civil-fraud-case\/index.html#:~:text=The%20attorney%20general's%20office%2C%20led,not%20regulated%20by%20New%20York\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">challenged<\/a> the \u201csufficiency\u201d of President Trump\u2019s posted bond. President Trump\u2019s attorneys countered by asking the judge to set aside Attorney General James\u2019s challenge because the bond is financially sound. A hearing on the financial sufficiency of the bond will be held on April 22. <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-6af0c892ffbf052e2059bb2e2d6f5fcf fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-6af0c892ffbf052e2059bb2e2d6f5fcf\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">    \t\t\t\t\t   \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>With the November 2024 election looming, the legal battle against ex-President Donald Trump intensifies as trials commence. The first criminal trial kicked off in New York City on April 15, with more to come in Florida and possibly Washington D.C. as well, shaping the political landscape as the legal saga unfolds<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3036,"featured_media":2225474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/48416922162_bbe89fcc2a_o.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2225473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/48416922162_bbe89fcc2a_o.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2225473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3036"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2225473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2225473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2225474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2225473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2225473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2225473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}