Liam Conner
Former President Donald Trump was found guilty of 34 criminal charges of falsifying business records by a New York jury on Thursday, marking the end of a landmark trial stemming from a “hush money” payment made to an adult film star before the 2016 election.
The trial lasted about six weeks and the jury spent two days deliberating before returning the verdict. Trump denounced the decision as “manipulated” and promised to fight the conviction. Your sentence is scheduled for July 11th.
Here are the basics of the charges, what happened during the trial and what comes next:
What were the charges?
Seth Wenig/Getty Images
Trump was indicted on March 30, 2023, and charged with 34 state counts of first-degree falsifying business records, a New York felony.
What was the verdict?
Trump was found guilty on all charges on May 30, 2024. The jury returned a unanimous verdict in Manhattan court, where the trial unfolded over six weeks.
What was needed for the jury to convict?
Judge Juan Merchan instructed jurors before beginning deliberations that to find Trump guilty of falsifying business records in the first degree, they needed to unanimously conclude not only that he caused the falsification of records, but that he “conspired to promote or impede the election of any person for public office by illicit means.”
There were a few types of “illegal means” that the jury heard evidence about, including: falsification of other business records, violations of campaign finance laws, and violations of tax laws.
What exactly did prosecutors say Trump did?
Prosecutors from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office said Trump met with former National Enquirer editor David Pecker and former fixer Michael Cohen at his Trump Tower in August 2015, and that the trio masterminded a conspiracy to identify, buy and suppress stories that could damage Trump’s reputation and presidential campaign.
Just days before the 2016 elections, Cohen paid adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000who claimed to have had sex with Trump in 2006. She agreed to keep her story secret in exchange for the money.
After Trump became president, Cohen received $35,000 a month for a year in a series of checks, most of which were signed by Trump. Prosecutors said the checks and associated business records were illegally presented as payments to Cohen for his legal work, when they were actually intended to reimburse him for the settlement with Daniels, among other things.
What did Trump’s lawyers say?
Jane Rosenberg
Trump’s lawyers said the deal with Pecker and the National Enquirer was not atypical for political campaigns, which often try to influence media narratives about candidates. They said non-disclosure agreements like the one Cohen signed with Daniels are also common.
As for the checks to Cohen, Trump’s lawyers noted that Cohen’s title at the time was “personal attorney to the president” and that he was actually being paid for ongoing legal work. They said Cohen and Trump had a verbal but unsigned agreement.
And Trump himself?
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges and denied all wrongdoing. He accused Bragg, a Democrat, of pursuing the case for political gain. Trump called the case a “fraud” and said the charges were “rigged” after the verdict was released.
Who were the main actors?
Trump, Cohen and Pecker got top billing during the trial. Pecker was called to the stand first by prosecutors and described the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting as well as years of communications with Cohen and Trump about the scheme.
His testimony corroborated key moments conveyed by Cohen, whose credibility the defense repeatedly sought to undermine. Pecker’s time on the stand was the beginning of weeks of testimony from 18 other people before Cohen, his final witness. Prosecutors sought to use these weeks to back up Cohen’s story with corroborating evidence.
During the first day of deliberations, the jury asked to hear portions of Pecker and Cohen’s testimony related to the Trump Tower meeting.
What did Cohen say?
Cohen said Trump received regular updates about efforts to cover up salacious stories about him when he ran for president in 2016, and personally signed off on the scheme to falsify records related to them.
Cohen recounted three instances in which he, Pecker and the editor of the National Enquirer worked to secure the rights to stories with salacious allegations about Trump.
The jury heard a secret recording Cohen made of a conversation with Trump, in which Trump appeared comfortable buying a story told by another woman named Karen McDougal.
“So how much do we have to pay for this? 150?” Trump can be heard saying on the tape.
Not long after the Enquirer paid for McDougal’s story, Daniels’ story hit the market. His lawyer approached the Enquirer about selling the rights the day after the “Access Hollywood” tape was released in October 2016. In the recording, Trump was heard saying he could “grab [women] by the p****” and “make them do anything.” The tape posed a major threat to his electoral prospects.
Cohen recounted intense negotiations in which everyone involved — Trump, Cohen, Daniels, his lawyer and the editor of the Enquirer — were aware that Daniels’ allegation of a sexual encounter with Trump could have dire consequences for his campaign.
Cohen wired Daniels’ lawyer $130,000 of his own money on October 28, 2016.
During his testimony, Cohen described how working for Trump for a decade was an “incredible” experience that turned sour after the payment of “hush money” to Daniels became public in 2018.
He testified that he believed he was subject to a “pressure campaign” by Trump and his allies after the FBI raided his home and office that year, leading to two guilty pleas to federal charges.
Under blunt questioning from defense attorney Todd Blanche, Cohen acknowledged that he has since made a living by loudly criticizing Trump.
He admitted wanting to see Trump arrested and said so on his podcast.
Cohen also acknowledged lying under oath on multiple occasions and, in a shocking moment, admitted for the first time to stealing tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization.
What did Daniels say on the stand?
Cristina Cornell
Daniels was not part of the scheme to influence the election. She never worked for Trump and was not involved in any of the crimes alleged in the case.
Still, her history of sex with Trump in 2006 was the catalyst that set in motion a series of events that led to this unprecedented criminal trial. Prosecutors said she was called to the booth because Blanche denied that they had had sex in her initial statement, a claim they believed they had to refute.
Daniels said she met Trump at a celebrity golf tournament in Nevada and was later invited by Trump’s bodyguard to dinner with the famous businessman. She said they met in a hotel suite that she described in elaborate detail, down to the tiles, and that she was hoping to go to dinner when instead they began talking about business.
Daniels said Trump showed great interest in his industry and seemed to value his insights. After about two hours of conversation, with no dinner in sight, she excused herself to go to the bathroom. She remembers being surprised when she came out and saw that Trump had stripped down to just his T-shirt and boxers. She described the sex that followed as, on her part, reluctant.
This part of his testimony caused the defense to demand a mistrial, a request that was denied.
Daniels then described frequent interaction with Trump over the next year — including a brief encounter with him at Trump Tower — because he promised to defend her to get a spot on his reality television competition. When he told her that wouldn’t happen, they stopped communicating.
Later, through a representative, she began shopping her story, seeking to sell the rights to it. As Trump’s presidential candidacy gained momentum in 2016, these efforts also intensified. They hit the big time in October of that year, when the “Access Hollywood” outtake emerged.
Daniels said he realized his story was potentially more valuable because it could be bad for his campaign. Cohen witnessed the frantic efforts to buy it.
What comes next?
Trump’s conviction begins the sentencing portion of the case. Merchan, the judge, set a July 11 date for Trump’s sentencing hearing. He asked the defense to file any motions he planned to request by June 13, and said prosecutors should respond by June 27.
Falsifying business records carries a maximum penalty of four years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each count, but Merchan has wide margin of maneuver when determining punishment. Some experts expect Merchan to use other options, such as fines, probation or home confinement. But others say he could order Trump to serve some time behind bars.
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