Two seated jurors dismissed as selection process continues for day 3 of Trump hush money trial

Former President Trump declared it is President Joe Biden who "should be in jail" and "be on trial," while blasting the case against him and saying "the whole world is watching this New York scandal," as he left court after the third day of his historic and unprecedented criminal trial. 

The former president, shortly after a full jury was selected to hear arguments from his defense attorneys and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg as he seeks to make his case, stood in the hallway of the courthouse and addressed the press. 

Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican presidential nominee, held a thick stack of news articles from a range of different news outlets and media organizations. 

This is an excerpt of a report by Fox News Digital's Brooke Singman. Click here to read the full story.

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The process to whittle down a jury pool of hundreds to just 12 in the hush money trial against former President Donald Trump continued late Thursday afternoon.

Judge Juan Merchan earlier in the day excused two seated jurors, reducing the number of sworn-in jurors from 7 to 5.

Trump's lawyers and lawyers from the Manhattan District Attorney's office continued questioning of the 18 prospective jurors Thursday.

Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass asked the 18 people in the jury box if anyone feels the DA would have to prove more than the law requires because the defendant is Donald Trump. One man answered, “I can be objective.” Another said he could apply the beyond a reasonable doubt standard to any defendant.

A lawyer who previously clerked for a federal judge told told the court she feared she may not be able to set aside prior knowledge and thoughts about Trump’s case. 

“I thought about this during lunch. I think the fact that I spent a year discussing this case with a federal judge and law clerks, I fear that I know too much,” she said. “I don’t know that I can put that aside. I’m worried that it’s going to seep in, in some way.” 

Asked by Steinglass if she worried she couldn’t put aside her prior knowledge of the case, she said, “Frankly, yes."

A woman whose son works for a Democrat member of the House of Representatives told the court his employment wouldn’t affect her ability to be fair and impartial.

When asked by Trump lawyer Susan Necheles about her feelings toward Trump, the woman responded, “It’s the first time I’ve been in a room with him. I’m a registered Democrat. But I have no feelings about him.”

A man who said he follows Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, on Twitter, as well as other figures — including former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway — said he did so for his work in finance.

“Anything that might move the markets I might need to know about,” he said.

Responding to questions from Trump lawyer Susan Necheles about his feelings about the former president, the man said that Trump has done some good for the country. “It’s ambivalent. It goes both ways,” he said.

Fox News' Maria Paronich contributed to this report.

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Former President Donald Trump returned to the Manhattan court room Thursday just after 2:00 p.m. following a lunch break in the jury selection process of his hush money trial.

Before entering the courter, Trump told reporters "we'll speak to you later," after reporters shouted questions to him.

Judge Juan Merchan earlier in the day excused two seated jurors, reducing the number of sworn-in jurors to five.

The court had started the day with seven confirmed jurors, but both juror 2 and Juror 4 have now been dismissed.

The two jurors dismissed Thursday expressed concern about their identities being made public through the media.

Juror 2, the first to be excused, said she had friends and family guess that she had been selected as a juror thanks to media reports. Juror 4, however, had a similar issue, though the leaked reports related to an incident in which he had been arrested.

Fox News Digital's Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.

Judge Juan Merchan declined a request from former President Trump's legal team to turn the temperature up in the courtroom where the hush money payments trial is taking place Thursday.

Trump's attorney, Todd Blanche, asked Merchan to turn up the temperature late Thursday morning, saying it was too cold. The courtroom largely responded with laughter, but Merchan said it wasn't possible because the temperature would go up "about 30 degrees" if they tried.

Merchan agreed that the temperature in the room was too cold, but said there was nothing that could be done about it.

The exchange came as Trump's team and prosecutors questioned the latest slate of 96 potential jurors. The court has to fill seven remaining seats after after two of the selected and sworn-in jurors were excused Thursday morning, leaving just five confirmed jurors.

The two jurors dismissed Thursday expressed concern about their identities being made public through the media. Juror 2, the first to be excused, said she had friends and family guess that she had been selected as a juror thanks to media reports. Juror 4, however, had a similar issue, though the leaked reports related to an incident in which he had been arrested.

Donald Trump (Getty Images)

Judge Juan Merchan excused another seated juror, number 4, on Thursday, reducing the number of sworn-in jurors to five.

The court started the day with seven confirmed jurors, but both juror 2 and Juror 4 have now been dismissed. Juror 4 faced questions from Trump's legal team and prosecutors throughout the morning. Merchan sealed the transcript due to the "very personal" nature of the questions, however.

Merchan said the juror expressed annoyance with how much of his personal information had been released to the public due to media reporting.

The juror participated in a discussion at the bench with Merchan and both teams of lawyers for several minutes before being excused.

The man had been arrested in Westchester, N.Y., for tearing town political advertisements, according to a prosecutor from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office. 

Steinglass said that after additional research, it also appeared that the juror’s wife had been previously accused of, or involved in a "corruption inquiry" that needed a "deferred prosecution agreement with the district attorney’s office."

"I actually believe the propaganda that was being ripped down was political posters that were on the right — the political right," prosecutor Joshua Steinglass said Thursday. 

With the departure of both jurors on Thursday, the court now needs to fill seven seats. The jury selection process is expected to last up to three weeks.

Merchan brought in an additional 96 potential jurors late Thursday morning, of whom at least 48 have already indicated that they could not be impartial in the case.

A potential juror who was excused from former President Trump's hush money payment trial spoke with Fox News moments after leaving the courthouse on Thursday.

The woman, who identified herself only as "Kat," said she had raised her hand during questions from Judge Juan Merchan to indicate that she felt she could not be impartial in the case.

She declined to explain why she felt she could not be impartial, saying it was "personal."

She said she and other potential jurors brought in for the trial were "shocked and frozen" when they discovered it was Trump's hush money case.

"It's a big case. It's a historical thing, right? So, it's very important. Our role was very important there as jurors," she added.

The potential juror was one of dozens of jury candidates who were excused on Thursday as Trump's legal team and prosecutors questioned the latest round of candidates. She was not one of the two jurors dismissed Thursday after being seated.

Donald Trump (Getty Images)

The court had sworn in seven jurors at the outset on Thursday, but one of them informed the judge that she could no longer be impartial, after her friends and family guessed her identity as a juror based on news reports.

In response, Merchan dismissed the juror and imposed new restrictions on what the media is allowed to report regarding the identities of the jurors.

Another seated juror was also dismissed Thursday.

Former President Trump is on trial for 34 counts related to accusations he falsified business records to cover up an affair with adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

Daniels claimed she and Trump had an affair in 2006, and that she was later paid $130,000 for her silence in the lead-up to the 2016 election by Trump’s former lawyer, Michael Cohen. Trump has denied any wrongdoing, as well as the affair itself.

Trump is accused of hiding the hush money payment by having Cohen hand over the money and then label the repayment to Cohen as legal expenses.

The ongoing trial is the culmination of an investigation started by former Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. It has since been picked up by current DA Alvin Bragg.

This is the first of Trump’s four criminal cases to go to trial – and the first criminal trial of any ex-president.

After Trump was indicted in April 2023, Bragg accused him of “falsifying New York business records in order to conceal damaging information and unlawful activity from American voters before and after the 2016 election.”

Alvin Bragg (Getty Images)

Prosecutors with DA Alvin Bragg's office accused former President Trump of violating the gag order in his hush money payment trial an additional seven times on Thursday.

Prosecutors had accused Trump of violating the order three times earlier this week and have requested a $1,000 fine for each violation. Together with Thursday's additional accusations, Trump would be liable for $10,000.

Bragg's team cited Trump's social media posts and other statements in their argument. Trump's team argued none of the instances constitute a "willful violation" of the order.

Judge Juan Merchan has scheduled a hearing to decide whether Trump violated the gage order for April 24.

Merchan imposed the order on April 1. It prevents Trump from making public comments about witnesses in the case, as well as certain court officials and their families.

Judge Juan Merchan excused one of the seven jurors who had been confirmed and sworn in on Thursday after she shared concerns that she could no longer be impartial in the case.

The juror told Merchan that she had been contacted by friends and family members who guessed that she had been one of the jurors based on information released by the press. As a result, she feared she would no longer be able to be impartial.

Merchan excused her and then admonished the press and instructed them not to report on certain qualities of selected jurors. For instance, he said there is no need to report that one juror has an Irish accent or the like. He also ordered the press not to report on juror answers about who their employer is and how big of a company their employer is.

"We just lost what could have been a good juror," Merchan said.

There are now just six jurors who have been confirmed and sworn in to participate in the trial, meaning six more are needed.

Stormy Daniels (Getty Images)

Former President Trump’s legal team says it tried to serve ex-pornographic actress Stormy Daniels with a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in a New York City bar last month, but she refused to accept it. 

A process server working for Trump’s lawyers said he approached Daniels with papers demanding information related to a documentary recently released about her life and involvement with Trump but was forced to "leave them at her feet," according to a court filing made public Wednesday.

Daniels is expected to be a key witness in Trump’s hush money case, where he is facing over 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. The trial marks the first time a former president will stand trial over criminal charges. 

"I stated she was served as I identified her and explained to her what the documents were," process server Dominic DellaPorte wrote. "She did not acknowledge me and kept walking inside the venue, and she had no expression on her face."

DellaPorte said he tried to serve Daniels prior to a screening of the documentary film "Stormy" at the 3 Dollar Bill nightclub in Brooklyn.

Trump’s lawyers are asking Judge Juan Merchan to force Daniels to comply with the subpoena. In their filing, they included a photo they said DellaPorte took of Daniels as she strode away.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Michael Dorgan

Jury selection in former President Trump’s unprecedented criminal trial stemming from charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is expected to resume Thursday morning.

Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has been charged with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. The charges are related to alleged hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts. He has blasted the trial as “pure politics,” a "political persecution" and maintains his innocence. The former president is expected to testify during his trial on his behalf.

Seven jurors were selected and sworn in on Tuesday. Eleven more are needed before opening arguments can begin.

The jury selection process can take up to two weeks. 

By the end of jury selection on Tuesday, seven jurors had been selected and sworn in. 

The jury pool so far includes four men and three women, all living in New York City. Their professions include work in law, finance, nursing, technology and more, but their identities remain protected.

Court will not meet for the trial on Wednesdays, and the third day of jury selection is expected to begin at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in Lower Manhattan.

Prospective jurors are asked questions about their professions, their backgrounds, their family, and their interests. They are also asked if they have any opinions about former President Trump, which media outlets they receive their news from, and whether they follow the former president on social media.

Donald Trump and his lawyer, Todd Blanche

Former President Trump is required, by law, to attend his ongoing criminal trial in person with few exceptions – a potential roadblock to his ongoing 2024 presidential campaign.

According to the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, Rule 43 states that a defendant "must be present at: (1) the initial appearance, the initial arraignment, and the plea; (2) every trial stage, including jury impanelment and the return of the verdict; and (3) sentencing." The law allows few exceptions to the mandatory attendance rule.

Exceptions where the defendant is not required to be present in the courtroom include if there is an organizational defendant, if it is a misdemeanor offense, if there is a hearing on a legal question, or if there is a correction being made to a sentence - none of which currently apply to Trump’s case.

The rules also state that, in a case where "the defendant waives the right to be present, the trial may proceed to completion, including the verdict's return and sentencing, during the defendant's absence."

Trump's hush money trial is expected to last six to eight weeks, with proceedings scheduled to take place weekly on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays – leaving Wednesday and the weekends open for the former president to attend campaign events in-person if he chooses to do so.

Trump wrote on his TruthSocial platform on Monday that he "will likely not be able to attend" the high school graduation ceremony of his son, Barron Trump. While the court has not yet ruled whether Trump may be excused from court that day, the event could be one of many the former president might have to miss.

While Trump's mandatory attendance in court may cause him to miss some pre-scheduled events, it does not mean he will forego campaigning for the next several weeks, as he maintains his social media presence to engage with voters and continues his bid as the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nominee.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Aubrie Spady

Jury selection in former President Trump’s historic and unprecedented criminal trial stemming from charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is expected to resume Thursday morning.

Bragg has charged Trump,  the 2024 presumptive Republican presidential nominee, with 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree. The charges are related to alleged hush money payments made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to all counts. He has blasted the trial as pure politics, a "political persecution," and maintains his innocence. The former president is expected to testify during his trial.

"I tell the truth," Trump said last week, when asked about his possible testimony.

Trump is the first president in United States history to stand criminal trial.

By the end of jury selection on Tuesday, seven jurors had been selected and sworn in. The jury pool so far includes four men and three women, all living in New York City. Their professions include law, finance, nursing, technology and more.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Brooke Singman