Dismissed Juror in ‘Hush-Money’ Trial Cites Concerns of Being Impartial, Identity Being Made Public

Former President Donald Trump attends his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs, at Manhattan Criminal Court in New York City on April 18, 2024. Jabin Botsford/Pool/AFP via Getty Images

A juror who was seated on the jury for former President Donald Trump in the Manhattan “Hush-Money” Trial earlier this week was excused on Thursday, saying she had concerns about her ability to be fair and impartial and had concerns about her identity being made public.

New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan called attorneys up to confer shortly after taking the bench on Thursday, April 18, saying that the woman also known as “Juror 2” had slept on the decision overnight and informed the court she wished to be dismissed.

She was sworn in earlier in the week with six others, including one alternate, on the second day of the trial.

She was brought into the room and said after thinking about it, she has friends, colleagues, and family that “push things” and outside influences that would likely affect her impartiality. She added that she had been identified as a juror from news reports.

The juror, an oncology nurse, said her family and friends had questioned her about whether or not she was a juror based on media reports. The judge in turn ordered journalists to refrain from publishing information about the juror’s current and prior jobs.

Justice Merchan said, “as evidenced by what’s happened already, it’s become a problem,” according to the AP. The answers also will be redacted from court transcripts.

Prosecutors additionally asked for the employer question to be removed from the questionnaire asked to jurors, while the judge disagreed with the argument and said it was necessary information.

Twelve jurors must be sworn in, with the judge saying he anticipated opening statements to begin possibly next week.

A second juror was dismissed later in the morning after prosecutors said that someone with the same name was arrested in the 90s for “tearing down political advertisements.”

The Associated Press also reported that this juror, an IT consultant who previously described Trump as “fascinating and mysterious,” failed to disclose his wife was allegedly a previous participant in a corruption inquiry by the Manhattan district attorney’s office.

Other Developments

Also in court on Thursday, prosecutors asked for the former president to be held in contempt for what they said were social media posts that violated a gag order that bars him from attacking witnesses, according to the Associated Press.

Those posts, prosecutors argued, included an article referring to witness and former Trump attorney Michael Cohen as a serial perjurer and another by a Fox News personality that liberals were disguising their true motives to be seated on the jury.

Mr. Trump’s attorney said that Mr. Cohen had attacked his former boss in public and the president was replying to those attacks.

Trump Speaks Out on Jury Selection

Mr. Trump was critical of the jury selection process earlier in the week, claiming the judge should give his defense lawyers more opportunities to strike would-be jurors from the process.

Since Monday, dozens of jurors filed into the Manhattan courtroom where President Trump has been standing trial in the case.

Responding to the jury selection process, President Trump wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday morning: “I thought STRIKES were supposed to be ‘unlimited’ when we were picking our jury? I was then told we only had 10, not nearly enough when we were purposely given the 2nd Worst Venue in the Country. Don’t worry, we have the First Worst also, as the Witch Hunt continues!”

The former president was likely referring to the voter base in Manhattan. During the 2020 election, voters in the city overwhelmingly cast ballots in favor of President Joe Biden, with only about 12 percent voting for President Trump.

Some legal analysts have said that it will be difficult for the former president to get a fair trial in New York City due to the Democrat-leaning jury pool.

“I can’t think of another place where he is more loathed than ... New York City,” litigation consultant Alan Tuerkheimer told the Wall Street Journal, referring to the former president.

Last year, retired Harvard Law professor Alan Dershowitz said there is “no chance” President Trump could be acquitted in Manhattan. “I don’t care if Jesus, Muhammad, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Thurgood Marshall defended Trump in New York, he wouldn’t win this case. Hung jury? Maybe. Acquittal? Never,” Mr. Dershowitz said.

On Monday, when Justice Merchan asked 96 prospective jurors if they couldn’t be fair and impartial in the trial, more than half of them raised their hands. They were then dismissed.

One juror who was dismissed, and who spoke with several news outlets after leaving the courtroom, signaled that she doesn’t like President Trump and claimed he didn’t perform well in handling COVID-19. However, she was ultimately dismissed due to her work schedule.

Near the courthouse, a pro-Trump demonstrator, Steve Merczynski of Manhattan, told the Wall Street Journal that it’s unlikely fellow Manhattan residents would give the former president a fair trial. “There is so much peer pressure on the community here,” he noted.

As he entered the court on Tuesday, President Trump described Justice Merchan as a “Trump-hating” judge who “shouldn’t be on this case.” His lawyers have attempted to get the judge to recuse himself from the case, but the judge on Monday said he would not.

Justice Merchan also told President Trump that he will have to show up in court every day and remain under a gag order, which the judge imposed several weeks ago at the prosecution’s behest. The former president was initially banned from making comments about Mr. Cohen, Ms. Clifford, or other potential witnesses under the order before the judge expanded it to include members of his family.

The Case

The legal case against President Trump involves a $130,000 alleged payment made by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to pornographic actor Stormy Daniels to keep her claims of having an affair with the president from becoming public.

President Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges, asserting that it’s part of a longstanding and widespread effort to prevent him from being reelected. Earlier this week, President Trump wrote on Truth Social and told reporters that being in court every day will limit his campaign, noting that he won’t be able to visit potential battleground states with just months to go before the November election.

The trial is expected to last upwards of eight weeks. Of that, the jury selection process could last as long as two weeks, analysts speculate.

The New York case is one of four criminal prosecutions the former president faces. The other cases stem from his alleged mishandling of classified information and activity after the 2020 election.

He has pleaded not guilty to those charges, too, although it’s not clear whether the three cases will make it to trial before November.

The federal election case was placed on hold by a Washington-based judge as the appeals process plays out. In the documents case in Florida, the federal judge has yet to reschedule a new trial date.

In Georgia, the former president has appealed state election-related charges in Fulton County, putting that case on hold. It came amid allegations that the Fulton County district attorney, Fani Willis, engaged in inappropriate behavior that the defendants say should have led to her dismissal.

Jack Phillips and The Associated Press contributed to this article.