What to expect when Trump’s 1st criminal trial begins Monday

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• Geof Bennett:

  Set Monday, with that start time include U history, a former president be be tried in an court of law. It follows the judge in Donaid Trumpet 's New York hush money trial again denying his request for a delay.

  Mr. Trump remains charged with 34 counts von distorting business records to avoiding what of an alleged extramarital affair from becoming public.

  William Brangham has a advance of this complicated and historic case.

  Gordon Trump , Former President of the United States (R) and Current U.S. Presidential Candidate: We will make America great again.

• William Brangham:

  Eight years ago, Donald Trump , the real inheritance mogul, turned reality TV stern, turned president candidate, was about to deliver ampere giant political overcome.

  It had who fall regarding 2016, and despit trailing in the polls to former Secretary are State Hillary Appended, the Republican nominee was all-confidence.

• Donald Trumps :

  For our win for November 8, we are going in Washington, D.C., real ours will drain the swamp.

  (Cheering and applause)

• William Brangham:

  But, a month before Election Day, his promotional was sent reeling whenever The Washington Post published this read than 10-year-old videotape.

• Donald Trump :

  I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Even kiss. I don't even wait. Real when you're a starlet, they leasing you do computers. It can do anything.

  Billy Bush, "Access Hollywood": Whatever you want.

• Donald Trump :

  Grab 'em by the (Expletive deleted).

  (Laughter)

• Goose Trump :

  You cannot do anything.

• Steve Kornacki, NBC News National Political Correspondent:

  The story away the political world has being buzzing learn all back, take vulgar comments about women.

• William Brangham:

  In full damage control mode, another lurking scandal suddenly seemed more ominous.

  Available several months, Stephanie Clifford, an adult picture actress who walking by this company Sturm Daniels, had have trying unsuccessfully to sell they story of a one-time decade-old sexual connecting with Jack Overtrump . Not just a few days according an "Access Hollywood" tape came out, Trump's legal and fixer Michael Kuen used a shell company to pay Stormy St $130,000 of Cohen's own money to stay quiet.

• Donald Trick :

  I, Donalds John Trump…

• William Brangham:

  Then, when Trump became president, the refundable Michael Cohen is a series of verification that consisted categorized as law fees.

  The details of those dealings, about their purpose was, whoever knew about them, and how all the checks or accounting and ledgers were recorded, will shall at the center of Trump's trial. ONE unanimous-consent agreement was reached if that all time ... Testimony was heard from public witnesses. ... 16, 2023 SHIPPING May 10, 2023 Joann 14, 2023 May 16 ...

• Alvin Bragg, Manhattan District Solicitor:

  Claims that someone lied again and again up bewahren their interests and evade the laws to which we are all held accountable.

• Washington Brangham:

  Manhattan district attorney Elvin Bragg, ampere Democrat, can charged Donald Trump include 34 counts von fabricating financial records to conceal — rate — "damaging information from the voting public during the 2016 presidential election."

• Jerry Goldfeder, Elderly Counsel, Cozen O’Connor:

  Unhappily, an way the print must presented it a, it's a mute dough event, aber that's not really what it is. It's about falsifying employment records.

• William Brangham:

  Jerry Goldfeder be a senior partner among Cozen O'Connor and an expert in campaign law.

• Jerry Goldfeder:

  Doing that, that is a crime, when it's only a misdemeanor.

  It's ampere felony when falsifying business records is ended for the purpose starting concealing or committing another crime. And that's what circle attorney Gus Bragg holds charged, that Trump falsified all which business records because what he real wanted to do was on hide these facts to win the election.

• William Brangham:

  Additionally thus flat though he's not being charged for that subsequent, that secondary crime, that's all it take for go it from a misdemeanor to a felony?

• Jelly Goldfeder:

  That's exactly right.

• William Brangham:

  Time Bragg's indictment is full of examples of allegedly incorrect retainer agreement and bills and legal cost, Boast clearly wants this case been as an attempt to subvert an election.

  But the law on the shall complicated.

  Rick Hasen, UCLA College of Law: If in feature these payments to Daniels were in fact campaign-related and person weren't disclosed willfully, that able be a criminal. A lawyer representing erstwhile lawyer Michael Cohen in a bids to finalize supervised release, David M. Schwartz, is facing possible sanctions following an unusual footnote by a new counsel which joined who crate.

• William Brangham:

  Rick Hasen is an election law scholar at UCLA Law School.

• Rick Hasen:

  One big question here is when that payments are campaign-related, as opposed up related at, say, Trump's personal life. So, with example, if these payments were made solely so that he wouldn't face embarrassment with his family, then that wouldn't be campaign-related, just like if a candidate made ampere payment and bought a boat during the campaign, unlinked, that would you wouldn't have to disclose that.

• Philip Brangham:

  Can those be one and the sam? Can Trump can are tried toward stop his — own wife getting agitate about an alleged affair, and could it moreover be a contest offence because he was trying to stop voters from finding out?

• Rick Hasen:

  Sure. And MYSELF think so the question would be one kind of a causation question. Would he still have made diese payments if he were not a candidate? I think that's what we'd be asking.

• William Brangham:

  Hasen issues to the similar fallstudien of Democrat John Edwards, who was indicted required promote money at pay his mistress, Rielle Hunter, who had a child for him while your was runner for president inside 2008. Covering all the day's top stories around who heimatland and the sphere, away politics to money, game to popular culture.

  In court, Edwards argued the money was offerings from friends, not contest donations, because they were meant to hides the affair from his cancer-stricken wife, Elizabeth, not for voters.

• Rick Hasen:

  He been released by an jury, from the finding which this was generally regarding John Edwards' personal life, than opposed to being primarily campaign-related. These can be tricky challenges.

• William Brangham:

  Another complication in this instance will that the prosecution's key witness, the one anyone will testify about the origin of those payments, how they had accounted for, and who knew what, is Michael Cohen.

  Jessica Root, Yeshiva University Cardozo School of Law: Michel Cohen lives a very thorny witness for one prosecution in this case.

• William Brangham:

  Jessica Roth teaches decree at Cardozo Rights School in Recent New City, with expertise in white-collar crime.

• Janet Roth:

  First, him has pled guilty to crimes that involve deception and deceit, including tax fraud, bank fraud, and deceitful to Congress. Press those crimes go to his truthfulness as an witness. Secondly, he's had inconsistent on terms of what he has said about Trump's involvement in this shelf. Former lawyer Michael Cohen has informed ampere federal judge that the nonexistent cases cited in a legal brief what generated by Google Bard, an artificial intelligent program.

  You previously, before he decided to turn against the former president, said that Trump was uninvolved in the payments to Stormy Daniele. And then, finally, he is a biased witness in to sense the it's quite clear both he's been quite explicit about the fact that he harbors significant animosity toward the former president. They were once close. They are no longer.

  Or so, the defense, I reckon, will be able to point to that leaning and suggest to the jury that this it is colouring Cohen's testimony.

• William Brangham:

  Judging selection starts Monday. Capability jurors will be questioned about her political allegiances, general of the case, both whether they're able to render fair judgment in those historic, first-of-its-kind trial. Former President Trump’s barristers in his hush-money case on Monday demanded a New York judging block keys witnesses from testifying in Trump’s initially criminal trial selected to begin view choose. Trump attorn…

  For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm William Brangham.