Donald Trump’s criminal hush money trial is moving to closing arguments next week. The former United States president’s fate will then lie in the hands of the jury. This is the only case against the Republican leader to reach a jury before the presidential elections in November.
As many as 22 witnesses testified in a Manhattan courtroom over the last month, with Trump’s former fixer Michael Cohen being the prosecution’s star witness.
What happens during closing arguments and what if Trump is convicted?
Here’s what you should know.
Day of closing arguments
Closing arguments in the first criminal trial of a former US president are slated for Tuesday (28 May).
Prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office will present their summations first and try to convince the jury comprising of a dozen New Yorkers that Trump falsified business records to conceal an alleged sexual encounter with adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump denies any role in falsifying the records and rejects the claim that he had sex with the porn star.
Prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Trump intentionally made or directed others to make false entries in business records, did so with intent to commit another underlying crime and sought to cover up the commission of that crime. They must also prove the 34 records in question were falsified.
Trump’s lawyers face a lower burden and only need to sow sufficient doubt in jurors’ minds to secure an acquittal, or sway at least one holdout among the 12 to deadlock the jury and trigger a mistrial.
What next after closing arguments?
Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing the hush money trial, will explain to the jury how to interpret the law and evidence during their deliberations.
Jurors will be told that they can only convict Trump if they believe he is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Deliberations could begin as soon as Wednesday.
During deliberations, jurors will have access to all of the evidence and be able to ask questions of the judge, who will confer with prosecutors and defense lawyers before deciding how to answer.
The verdict of jurors has to be unanimous. In case of an impasse, Merchan will declare a mistrial.
Once jurors inform the court they have reached a verdict, Merchan will summon the parties to the courtroom to hear it read by the foreperson. Merchan must still affirm the verdict and enter a final judgment. Either side can ask him to effectively overrule the jury.
What if Trump is convicted?
Donald Trump could become the first former president to be convicted of felony charges.
Trump is facing 34 felony counts and has pleaded not guilty to all.
But even if he is convicted, it would likely be several weeks or months until he is sentenced. As a first-time offender of a nonviolent crime, he would likely be released on bond in the meantime.
It is rare for people with no criminal history who are convicted only of falsification of business records to be sentenced to prison in New York. Punishments like fines or probation are more common.
Falsifying business records, which is a serious offense under New York law, attracts a punishment of up to four years of imprisonment. However, defendants are typically sentenced to a year or less in prison.
With inputs from Reuters
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