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NEWSLINE PAPER,- Donald Trump is ready to become the inaugural former US president to go on trial in a criminal matter when he enters in a New York courthouse on Monday, marking history. The 77-year-old is charged with hiding a hush-money payment made to former adult film actress Stormy Daniels just before the 2016 election by manipulating company records.
Trump may face a maximum four-year jail term if proven guilty, however he might be spared from jail and just have to pay penalties.
The legal processes occur during Trump's presidential campaign, thus the probable Republican nominee may be charged with a crime before the November elections. Professionals have taken notice of this unusual situation; Alex Keyssar, a Kennedy School professor at Harvard University, remarked on the trial's historical relevance.
Juror selection for the six to eight week trial, which centres on a payment made by Trump to his former attorney, Michael Cohen, is scheduled to start on Monday. The 57-year-old Cohen says he was instructed to give Daniels $130,000 in order to remain quiet about a purported relationship with Trump. Prosecutors contend that this payment was an illegal attempt to influence the 2016 election.
Though hush money payments are not intrinsically criminal, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office alleges that Trump violated the law by misclassifying the reimbursement to Cohen as legal costs. He faces 34 first-degree felonies for which all 12 jurors must agree.
Important players in the case, including Cohen, Daniels, and Trump's personal attorney, who bears some of the blame for his own incarceration, are expected to testify in the trial.
Still, Professor Keyssar said that his guilty conviction would be a historic first since it would be the first time a major political party had a criminal presidential candidate. Even while Trump faces criminal accusations, his support with a huge segment of the voters has not been much affected.
The anticipated court processes insure that Trump will remain a focus of attention in the months before the election. The intense focus on the trial means that any results—positive or negative for Trump—may affect the rivalry between the former and current presidents.
(WayFath/NEWSLINEPAPER)