Former President Trump, flanked by lawyer Todd Blanche arrives at Manhattan Criminal Court to attend his trial for allegedly covering up hush money payments linked to extramarital affairs in New York City on April 22, 2024. (ANGELA WEISS/Pool via REUTERS)
Merchan also explained to the panel that jurors must operate fairly, that the defense team is not required to prove Trump's innocence and that the 45th president is also not required to testify.
The jurors were reportedly listening intently as Merchan described their rules surrounding the case. The trial is not televised, but the media is permitted in an overflow room in the courthouse.
TRUMP'S LEGAL TEAM OFFERS PEEK AT STRATEGY AS OPENING STATEMENTS SET TO BEGIN AND MORE TOP HEADLINES
The trial’s origins reach back to October 2016, when Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen paid former pornographic actor Stormy Daniels $130,000 to allegedly quiet her claims of an alleged extramarital affair she had with the then-real estate tycoon in 2006. Trump has denied having an affair with Daniels.
Trump was charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. He pleaded not guilty to all counts.
A court sketch depicts former President Trump’s appearance in Manhattan Criminal Court in New York on Friday, April 19, 2024. (Christine Cornell)
Pecker served as the former chairman of the National Enquirer’s parent company, American Media Inc., and allegedly was a key figure of a "catch and kill" scheme ahead of the 2016 election. Daniels reportedly agreed to grant exclusive rights to the National Enquirer on her claims of an affair with Trump, with Pecker allegedly contacting Cohen to "purchase" Daniels' silence on the alleged affair.
The trial on Monday was supposed to conclude at 2 p.m., ahead of the Jewish holiday of Passover beginning at sundown, but it will wrap up at 12:30 due to a juror's toothache and dental appointment.
Trump slammed the trial in brief comments to the media earlier Monday, calling it a "Biden" trial and saying Americans should "understand" that his criminal trial is taking place "for the purposes of hurting the opponent of the worst president in the history of our country."
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"I just want to say before we begin — these are all Biden trials," Trump said before opening statements were delivered Monday. "This is done as election interference. Everybody knows it."
"I’m here instead of being able to be in Pennsylvania and Georgia and lots of other places campaigning, and it’s very unfair. Fortunately, the poll numbers are very good," Trump continued. "They’ve been going up because people understand what’s going on."
Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman contributed to this report.
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