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In an unprecedented moment for American politics, Donald Trump has been found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records in a criminal scheme designed to influence the 2016 election. The verdict, delivered by a jury after less than 12 hours of deliberation, marks the first criminal conviction of a US president.
Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination in the upcoming election, faced accusations of paying adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 for her silence about their affair. The Manhattan district attorney’s office argued that Trump disguised these payments as “legal expenses” to hide his violation of New York state election law.
The jury of 12 New Yorkers found Trump guilty of felony falsification of business records, a charge that involves making or causing false entries in records with the intent to commit a second crime. Trump will be sentenced on 11 July.
“This was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt,” Trump declared at the courthouse. “This was a rigged trial, a disgrace.”
In contrast, President Joe Biden’s campaign responded promptly to the verdict. “In New York today, we saw that no one is above the law,” wrote Michael Tyler, Biden’s communications director. “But today’s verdict does not change the fact that the American people face a simple reality. There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box.”
The prosecution presented a case that centred on Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who made the payment to Daniels. They argued that this payment, disguised as a legal expense, was an illegal campaign contribution exceeding the $2,700 individual contribution cap.
Over four weeks, 20 witnesses testified about Trump’s efforts to suppress stories of his affairs with Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal. Testimonies revealed Trump’s increasing concern after the infamous Access Hollywood tape release, where he boasted about sexual assault.
Cohen’s testimony was pivotal. He detailed how he raised the $130,000 through a home equity loan, wired it to Daniels’ lawyer, and was reimbursed by Trump through falsified invoices and payments recorded as legal expenses. Cohen recounted Trump’s directive to “just take care of it,” emphasising Trump’s intent to prevent the affair from becoming public knowledge.
The trial’s outcome casts a shadow over Trump’s political future, as the nation awaits his sentencing and contemplates the implications of his criminal conviction.
