Jury finds Donald Trump guilty of all 34 counts in hush-money trial. Here’s how it unfolded. - The Boston Globe (2024)

Trump has several avenues for appealing the verdict — 7:20 p.m.

By The Associated Press

After Trump is sentenced, he can challenge his conviction in an appellate division of the state’s trial court and possibly, the state’s highest court. Trump’s lawyers have already been laying the groundwork for appeals with objections to the charges and rulings at trial.

The defense has accused the judge of bias, citing his daughter’s work heading a firm whose clients have included President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats. The judge refused the defense’s request to remove himself from the case, saying he was certain of his “ability to be fair and impartial.”

Trump’s lawyers may also raise on appeal the judge’s ruling limiting the testimony of a potential defense expert witness. The defense wanted to call Bradley Smith, a Republican law professor who served on the Federal Election Commission, to rebut the prosecution’s contention that the hush money payments amounted to campaign-finance violations.

But the defense ended up not having him testify after the judge ruled he could give general background on the FEC but couldn’t interpret how federal campaign finance laws apply to the facts of Trump’s case or opine on whether Trump’s alleged actions violate those laws. There are often guardrails around expert testimony on legal matters, on the basis that it’s up to a judge — not an expert hired by one side or the other — to instruct jurors on applicable laws.

The defense may also argue that jurors were improperly allowed to hear sometimes graphic testimony from p*rn actor Stormy Daniels about her alleged sexual encounter with him in 2006. The defense unsuccessfully pushed for a mistrial over the tawdry details prosecutors elicited from Daniels. Defense lawyer Todd Blanche argued Daniels’ description of a power imbalance with the older, taller Trump, was a “dog whistle for rape,” irrelevant to the charges at hand, and “the kind of testimony that makes it impossible to come back from.”

Trump campaign releases statement criticizing verdict — 7:19 p.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

Trump’s campaign released a statement after his criminal conviction, calling the trial “rigged” and criticizing the judge who oversaw the case, a repetition of many of the refrains he has voiced throughout the trial.

He asserted that he is innocent and that he is “fighting for our Constitution.”

”I think it’s just a disgrace. And we’ll keep fighting. We’ll fight till the end, and we’ll win because our country has gone to hell,” the statement said.

Former N.H. Republican Party chairman praises the process: ‘Our judicial system worked today’ — 7:17 p.m.

By Amanda Gokee, Globe Staff

For some long-time political observers in New Hampshire, Trump’s guilty verdict was evidence of the justice system working as it was designed.

Thomas D. Rath, a former Attorney General of New Hampshire and past Republican Party national committeeman, praised the process in a post on social media, commending the justice system for doing its job.

”I have [been] trying cases before juries for a very long time. And juries usually get it right, and they did just that today,” he wrote. “Our judicial system worked today. And that’s the best news.”

Other Republicans in the state saw it differently, claiming the system had been rigged against the former president – a point that Trump has frequently repeated.

The New Hampshire House majority leader Jason Osborne, an Auburn Republican, suggested that Democrats had influenced the outcome of Trump’s trial.”It’s an unusual way to win the Presidency, but I suppose congratulations are in order all the same,” he said in a statement.

‘The sun came out when Trump was convicted,’ beams one Boston resident — 7:11 p.m.

By Erin Douglas, Globe Staff

Allen Goldberg, 67, arrived at the dog park in Beacon Hill Thursday evening eager to share the news with his friends: Trump was convicted.

”She was so happy that she gave me a hug,” he said, with a laugh and gesture to a friend.

Goldberg, who works at a tech company in the Seaport District, said he suspected the jury would succumb to political pressure not to convict the former president.

So, he was pleased when, in his view, they did what was right. He doesn’t think it’ll impact the outcome of the election, though.

”Every time I think it’s going to [make a difference], the polls say he’s still right up there, and I can’t figure out why,” Goldberg said. He’s worried that the guilty verdict will only energize “MAGA” Republicans.

Still, he said, watching his golden retriever play in the grass, it’s a beautiful day in Boston.

”It was the highlight of a rainy day,” Goldberg said. “The sun came out when Trump was convicted.”

Read the complete jury verdict sheet — 7:05 p.m.

By Peter Bailey-Wells, Globe Staff

Here’s the jury’s complete verdict sheet from the trial.

A young N.H. voter worries: What does the Trump verdict mean for democracy? — 7:07 p.m.

By Amanda Gokee, Globe Staff

Benjamin Doyle, 19, said he was both shocked and thrilled when he heard that former president Donald Trump had been convicted on all counts.

Doyle, a registered Democrat who is finishing his freshman year at the University of New Hampshire, heard the news on the radio as he settled in for a quick nap at his Greenland, N.H., home.

He was surprised that “a former president not that far removed from his presidency could find himself totally on the other side of the American government,” he said.

But the conviction also gives him pause, he said, when he considers the future of politics: “When we look back at this in 50 years are we going to say this is the moment when American presidents started being felons?” he wondered.

‘He can still lead the country from jail.’ In Roxbury, an immigrant mourns Trump conviction. — 7:03 p.m.

By Jenna Perlman, Globe Staff

As Adam Omer waited for the bus in Roxbury’s Nubian Square, smoking a cigarette, he sighed.

“I’m disappointed because all the people are against him. He’s by himself.”

Originally from Kenya, Omer, an electrician by trade, has been in the US for 10 years. He said Thursday’s conviction doesn’t change the positive feelings he has for former president Trump.

“He can still lead the country from jail. In Africa, we don’t have democracy and I experienced that democracy here. I hope he wins.”

He continued: “With everything people said about him, the scandals — it shows that he’s a powerful person to leave all of that behind and focus on his campaign.”

‘Today, the rule of law was upheld,’ Representative Katherine Clark says — 6:58 p.m.

By Charlotte Ehrlich, Globe Correspondent

Massachusetts Representative Katherine Clark, Democrat of Revere, celebrated the jury’s decision to convict Trump, saying “Today, the rule of law was upheld.”

”In America, no person is above the law — regardless of wealth, fame, or position. That value underpins our democracy,” Clark said in a statement.

”Trump made deception a cornerstone of his campaign for the White House. And now, he will go down in history as the president who has two impeachments and 34 felony convictions to his name — with more trials to come. The American people deserve so much better,” the statement said.

Bragg calls Trump ‘a defendant unlike any other,’ thanks jurors for their service — 6:50 p.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the case against Trump, thanked the jury for its service and underscored the amount of testimony and records jurors considered in reaching their verdict in a press conference on Thursday evening.

”The 12 everyday jurors vowed to make a decision based on the evidence and the law and the evidence and the law alone,” Bragg said, and their deliberations “led them to a unanimous conclusion” that Trump is guilty.

Bragg described Trump as a “defendant unlike any other in American history.”

And yet, “we arrived at this trial and ultimately today at this verdict, in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors: By following the facts and the law and doing so without fear or favor.”

Trump trial was for ‘purely political purposes,’ Republican N.H. congressional candidate says — 6:35 p.m.

By Amanda Gokee and Steven Porter, Globe Staff

Hollie Noveletsky, a candidate running for the Republican nomination in New Hampshire’s 1st Congressional District, criticized the verdict and said the trial was brought against Trump for “purely for political purposes.”

”This decision is a disgrace but, unfortunately, it is also expected!” Noveletsky said in a statement, calling it “a sad day for America.”

”This verdict has nothing to do with ‘justice,’” she said. “Instead, it is all about punishing President Trump for standing up against the radical left; and now it is their desperate attempt to defeat him in his bid for re-election.”

Noveletsky, a nurse and businesswoman who was formerly a US Army reservist, is running against Russell Prescott for the GOP nomination. Prescott called the conviction a “sham” decision.

”Our founders would be appalled that our justice system has been used to target a political opponent for the purposes of trying to achieve an election victory. I believe the American people to be smarter than this, and I am confident they will see through this sham of a ruling and the proceedings that came before it,” he wrote on social media.

‘It’s refreshing to see all of this actually go somewhere.’ Relief over Trump verdict at Beacon Hill playground. — 6:35 p.m.

By Erin Douglas, Globe Staff

Pam Dalton, 34, and her friend Jess Stewart, 34, were both alerted to the news by family group texts. At a Beacon Hill playground on Thursday, watching Dalton’s young child play, they laughed recalling the joyful texts that lit up their phone this afternoon.Stewart’s father gave her a heads up that the verdict was about to be announced, and that text, she recalled, “was very nerve racking.”

Those nerves lasted for about 20 long minutes, she said.

”I saw the text that he was guilty of 34 counts, and I was like, ‘whew!’” Stewart said, with a sigh of relief. “Now I can go about my day.”

”It’s refreshing to see all of this actually go somewhere,” Stewart said. “It’s one thing to be accused of something, but it’s another to be convicted of something.”

‘Accountability is welcome and long overdue,’ Representative Ayanna Pressley says — 6:33 p.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

US Representative Ayanna Pressley, Democrat of Boston, celebrated Trump’s conviction, calling it “an important step toward accountability.”

“Make no mistake, Donald J. Trump is not a man persecuted because of his politics — he has been defrauding people, exacting harm, and evading legal accountability for decades,” Pressley said in a statement. “From discriminating against Black tenants to defrauding small businesses, to bribery, hush money schemes, election interference, and insurrection, this man has broken the law to advance his own interests at the expense of other people and to the detriment of our democracy.”

”Accountability is welcome and long overdue. This man is undoubtedly unfit to serve in public office,” the statement said. “The threat he poses to our nation and our democracy cannot be overstated.”

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg is set to speak soon. Watch it live. — 6:29 p.m.

By Peter Bailey-Wells, Globe Staff

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is set to give a news conference following the guilty verdict.

Watch it live.

Outside the courthouse, an hour postverdict — 6:26 p.m.

By the Associated Press

About an hour after the verdict was read, the scene at the park across from the courthouse was mellow, with just a few dozen people celebrating.

One person held a sign reading “lock him up.” Another tried to start a call and response, but there wasn’t anyone around.

Outside the nearby federal courthouse, a small number of Trump supporters gathered. Bronx resident Carmen Alvarez, 64, was among them. “I think he’s innocent of everything,” said Alvarez, 64, in Spanish.

‘No one is above the law.’ Read statements from several Rhode Island politicians. — 6:25 p.m.

By Ed Fitzpatrick, Globe Staff

US Representative Seth Magaziner, a Rhode Island Democrat: “Todays verdict confirms that everyone in our country is equal under the law. We have known for years that Donald Trump lacks the honesty and integrity to hold the Oval Office, and his criminal conviction today offers yet another reason why.”

US Representative Gabe Amo, a Rhode Island Democrat: “Donald Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts reaffirms a key tenet of our justice system: no one is above the law. His agenda of grievance, retribution, and turning back the clock has no business being anywhere near the Oval Office — he lost today in the courtroom, and in November, we’ll make sure he loses at the ballot box, too.”

Former Rhode Island state Representative Joseph A. Trillo, a Warwick Republican: “I can’t believe where this country is right now, let alone this trial,” he said. Trillo described the charges as “bogus,” accused the judge of being biased, and said the trial should have been moved out of New York City to another venue. “This is going to get overturned on an appeal for sure,” he said.

Republicans ‘can spin any negative thing to be positive,’ said one Democrat, but hopes the verdict will have ‘impact’ — 6:23 p.m.

By Niki Griswold, Globe Staff

Leonora Foley, a Democrat who works with homeless veterans, found out about the verdict through a text from a friend, which she said she initially found confusing.

All the text included was what looked like a score for a game. But when the friend clarified it was the number of counts in which Trump had been found guilty, she immediately celebrated.

”I don’t see any virtue in him, or now the Republican Party,” Foley said.

After the news settled in, Foley, 59, said she’s feeling cautiously optimistic.

”It seems like the Republican Party, or the Trump camp, can spin any negative thing to be positive,” she said. “So I’m just worried about that. But hopefully, this will be something that will have a bigger impact.”

What’s most important to her, she said, is that Trump doesn’t become president again.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu says Trump verdict shows ‘no one … is above the law’ — 6:17 p.m.

By Niki Griswold, Globe Staff

“This guilty verdict underscores the crucial role that an independent judiciary plays in our democracy,” said Boston Mayor Michelle Wu in a statement Thursday evening. “No one, not even a former president, is above the law. It also serves as a reminder of what’s at stake this November and the importance of electing leaders who will safeguard our democratic institutions.”

‘It’s just a happy day.’ Northeastern student feels hope at Trump verdict, but doubts he’ll see jail — 6:11 p.m.

By Niki Griswold, Globe Staff

Caitlyn Cennamo, a 20-year-old business student at Northeastern University, said she had been keeping an eye on the trial and waiting for news of a verdict this evening.

”I just feel like he shouldn’t be the president of our country. … I do feel like he’s committed crimes,” Cennamo said, adding that her first reaction was a mixture of hope and excitement. “It’s just a happy day.”

Her first instinct was to begin texting friends to speculate over the verdict’s implications, particularly about how it will impact the 2024 presidential election.

While the best case scenario would be that the verdict disqualifies him from running for president, she said, she’s not optimistic that’ll happen.

”Powerful and rich people always seem to find a way to do what they want, and they have a lot of power to control the outcome of their fates,” she said.

At the very least, though, she said she’s happy with the trial’s result.

What Trump’s conviction means for the presidential race — 6:07 p.m.

By James Pindell, Globe Staff

Trump’s conviction was watched around the globe not just for the historic novelty of it all, but also for the potential implications of the presidential race, just over 5 months away.

Here is the bottom line: the direct implications on the race are murky at best.

READ MORE

Mass. lawmakers, other notable figures react — 6:00 p.m.

By Travis Andersen and Nick Stoico, Globe Staff

“It’s official: Trump is a convicted felon!” Democratic Representative Jim McGovern of Worcester wrote in a post on X.

“No one is above the law,” Representative Lori Trahan, a Westford Democrat, said on X.

READ MORE

See each of the 34 counts and results — 5:53 p.m.

By Christina Prignano, Globe Staff

Trump was found guilty of all 34 counts. They were related to invoices, ledger entries, and checks. In the table below, see details of each count and how the jury decided.

Where do the other investigations into Trump stand? — 5:48 p.m.

By Christina Prignano, Globe Staff

After Trump was convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records, where do the other investigations into his conduct stand?

In addition to the hush-money case, Trump is also facing charges in three other criminal cases: A federal indictment accuses Trump of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election, and a separate federal case is related to Trump’s handling of classified documents after leaving the White House. The third case is related to Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn his election loss in Georgia in 2020.

We’re tracking the movements in each case. See the key players, read the counts, and learn where each investigation stands.

‘It’s heartening.’ Boston law student says she celebrated Trump guilty verdict — 5:48 p.m.

By Erin Douglas, Globe Staff

Taylor Barnett, a law student at Suffolk University Law School, was working at her summer job at a Boston law firm when the verdict came down. She and her colleagues celebrated together.

”We were all happy with the verdict,” Barnett said. “It’s heartening to see that a former president could be convicted when he does commit a crime.”

As the verdict was announced, she started receiving texts from her friends and family.

“Amen,” texted her grandfather, who had voted for Trump in 2016, but who later changed his mind about the former president.

Still, Barnett, 25, said she is hesitant to celebrate too much. She, and others in her office, doubt the former president will actually go to jail, Barnett said. And there’s still the matter of the election.

”I’m concerned he can still be president even if he was convicted on all those counts.”

Biden’s communications director reacts to verdict — 5:42 p.m.

By the Associated Press

President Biden’s campaign sought to keep the focus on the November election even at it said Thursday that former President Trump’s criminal conviction showed that “that no one is above the law.”

Communications director Michael Tyler said in a statement: “There is still only one way to keep Donald Trump out of the Oval Office: at the ballot box. Convicted felon or not, Trump will be the Republican nominee for president.”

Biden himself has yet to weigh in on the verdict. He is spending the night at his family’s beach house in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, after marking the anniversary of his son Beau’s death earlier Thursday at church in Wilmington.

Biden’s campaign has tried for months to remind Americans of what it sees as the peril of another Trump term in office, rather than the personal jeopardy faced by the former president in court.”

A second Trump term means chaos, ripping away Americans’ freedoms and fomenting political violence – and the American people will reject it this November,” Tyler said.

House speaker says Trump verdict marks ‘shameful day in American history’ — 5:39 p.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

House Speaker Mike Johnson, who was among the Republican lawmakers who supported Trump in Manhattan criminal court during the trial, said in a statement that the verdict marks a “shameful day in American history.”

“Democrats cheered as they convicted the leader of the opposing party on ridiculous charges, predicated on the testimony of a disbarred, convicted felon. This was a purely political exercise, not a legal one.

Johnson said the verdict is “further evidence that Democrats will stop at nothing to silence dissent and crush their political opponents.”

Trump will remain released before his sentencing — 5:30 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump will remain released on his own recognizance, Judge Merchan said.

Judge sets Trump’s sentencing for July 11 — 5:23 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The judge set Trump’s sentencing for July 11, just days before Republicans are set to select him as 2024 nominee.

Speaking outside of court, Trump bashes verdict — 5:19 p.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

After he was convicted, Trump spoke outside of court and repeated his familiar criticisms of the trial, calling it a “disgrace” and “rigged.”

He called himself “an innocent man.”

“We’ll keep fighting,” Trump said. “We’ll fight to the end and we’ll win.”

He walked away from cameras without taking questions from reporters.

Trump found guilty of all 34 counts — 5:11 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jurors convicted Trump on all 34 counts after deliberating for 9.5 hours. As the verdict was read, he sat stone-faced in court, looking down.

Trump found guilty of at least one count — 5:08 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Former president Donald Trump has been found guilty of at least one count in his hush-money trial, marking the first criminal conviction of a former US president.

Judge Merchan is on the bench — 5:01 p.m.

By the Associated Press

District Attorney Alvin Bragg has entered the courtroom and is sitting with aides in the gallery awaiting the verdict — 4:52 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The “hurry up and wait” beat of deliberations has given way to anticipatory tension — and some surprise. The jury transmitted the news that it reached a verdict by note to Judge Juan M. Merchan at 4:20 p.m., just a few minutes after he’d announced to the courtroom — minus the jury — that court would adjourn at 4:30 p.m. barring a verdict. Merchan said his plan was to allow jurors to keep working until that time and then send them home to start fresh on Friday.

Moments later, that plan went out the window and the verdict will be read in court soon.

District Attorney Alvin Bragg has entered the courtroom and is sitting with aides in the gallery awaiting the verdict — 4:50 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump is now sitting with his arms folded across his chest as he awaits the reading of the verdict — 4:48 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury sent Judge Merchan a note signed shortly after 4:20 — 4:44 p.m.

By the Associated Press

“We the jury have a verdict. We would like an extra 30 minutes to fill out forms,” read the note.

Jury has reached a verdict — 4:42 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury in Donald Trump’s hush-money case has reached a verdict and asked for an additional 30 minutes to fill out the form.

Judge says the jury will go home for the day soon if they haven’t reached a verdict — 4:20 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jurors will continue deliberating until 4:30 p.m. and then, if they haven’t reached a verdict, will be sent home for the day and resume their work on Friday.

Judge Merchan says he’ll excuse the jury for the day at 4:30 p.m. — 4:18 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump returns to the courtroom — 4:17 p.m.

By the Associated Press

“I want to campaign,” he told reporters in the hallway before walking in.

Once inside, he again surveyed the crowd as he walked to his seat at the defense table.

For whom the bell tolls — 4:02 p.m.

By the Associated Press

As deliberations wear on, it’s a bit of the old adage “hurry up and wait” at the courthouse.

With the jury working in secret in a separate room, and Trump and his team holed up elsewhere in the building, reporters remain in the courtroom waiting for word — or rather the sound — of a new development.

Each time the jury has a question — and eventually if it reaches a verdict — it must send a note to the judge. They signal this by ringing a bell that blares in the courtroom. The sound is akin to that of an old telephone or alarm clock.

So far Thursday, the bell hasn’t rung at all after tolling twice within an hour on Wednesday.

That’s made for a somewhat surreal scene in the normally bustling Manhattan courtroom. The front of the room where the action happens is empty, save for a few court officers and staff. No judge, no prosecutors, no defense team, no former president and certainly no jurors.

The room that reverberated with dramatic testimony and tense arguments over the last six weeks is now eerily quiet, save for the clicks of laptop keys and the din of chatter among reporters and members of the public sitting, watching and waiting for the bell to ring.

TV networks vamp for time during the wait for the Donald Trump verdict — 3:19 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jury deliberation means tense, ultimately boring hours of waiting for lawyers, journalists, and others at the Manhattan courtroom where Trump’s hush-money trial is being held.

It’s the same for television networks covering the case — except they have hours of time to fill for viewers. Rather than switch to something else, they have largely stuck close to the courthouse.

The New York accents of court reporters reading testimony. A juror’s facial expression. And tea leaves — plenty of tea leaves.

The courtroom has reopened after the lunch break — 2:42 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jury deliberations are continuing.

What resources does the jury have during deliberation? — 2:22 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jurors have access to a laptop computer loaded with all of the documentary evidence they saw and heard during the trial, including checks, invoices, phone records, text messages and recordings. But, by law, they don’t get to have copies of the testimony transcripts or the judge’s instructions. If they want to hear testimony again, the jury sends a note to the judge asking for what’s known as a readback. The court reporter reads the testimony aloud to the jury.

What happens when there’s a verdict? — 1:59 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Once the jury reaches its verdict, it’ll be read in court by the foreperson.

Lawyers can then ask to poll the jury — quizzing each juror on whether they agree with the findings. After that, the judge will dismiss the jurors, ending their jury service. If a defendant is convicted, the judge will set a date for sentencing.

Sentencing can be as soon as a few weeks or a month later. If the jury returns a not guilty verdict on all charges, no charges will be pending against the defendant, who is free to leave. If the judge declares a mistrial, typically a new court date is set as prosecutors weigh whether to retry the case.

North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum does interviews outside the courthouse — 1:16 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Burgum, seen as one of the potential running mates for Trump, was among the Republican officials who accompanied Trump to court in recent weeks as a show of support, but he was not seen inside court with him Thursday.

The courtroom closes for lunch — 12:56 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Jurors may continue deliberating during the break, but no action can occur and no notes can be passed. The lunch break will end at 2:15 p.m.

Does the jury decision have to be unanimous? — 11:46 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury must unanimously decide — guilty or not guilty — on each count.

That means all 12 jurors must agree. If jurors don’t reach an agreement, they could come back and say they are deadlocked. Traditionally, the judge would then encourage them to continue deliberating, but if they can’t reach a consensus, it would be up to the judge to decide whether to declare a mistrial.

Trump posts online while the jury deliberates — 11:39 a.m.

By the Associated Press

As the jury resumes its deliberations, Trump, who is in a holding room in the courthouse, is continuing to rail against the trial and proclaim his innocence.

“I DID NOTHING WRONG! IN FACT, I DID EVERYTHING RIGHT,” he wrote on Truth Social. “The testimony in Court was amazing for the Defense!”

Trump exits the courtroom — 11:24 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump and his attorneys have left the courtroom.

The reading of testimony is finished and jurors are returning to deliberate — 11:20 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The foreperson indicated the jurors would like both headphones and a speaker to listen to recordings that are in evidence.

Inside the courtroom — 10:56 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Two court stenographers are rereading portions of testimony requested by jurors, one playing the lawyers and one playing the witnesses. One is sitting in the witness box while the other is a few feet away from the bench. It’s a drier and emotionless recitation missing some of the drama of the moments as they played out in the courtroom earlier in the trial.

Testimony excerpts are reread for the jury — 10:35 a.m.

By the Associated Press

After roughly a half hour of rehearing some of the judge’s legal instructions, jurors now are listening to something else they requested: portions of testimony from former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker and a bit from Trump’s ex-lawyer Michael Cohen.

Court stenographers are to reread both witnesses’ testimony about an August 2015 Trump Tower meeting at which Pecker agreed to publish articles that favored then-candidate Trump and assailed his opponents and to serve as the campaign’s “eyes and ears” for potentially damaging stories and rumors so they could be suppressed.

The jury also asked to rehear Pecker’s testimony about a phone call he says he had with Trump about a hush money deal that the National Enquirer’s parent company made with former Playboy model Karen McDougal, and about Pecker’s decision not to sell the rights to McDougal’s story to Trump.

She claimed she had an affair with Trump, which he denies.

Jurors rehear instructions relating to Michael Cohen’s testimony — 10:34 a.m.

By the Associated Press

While Trump fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen is crucial to the prosecution’s case against Trump, jurors were reminded that they can’t convict the former president on Cohen’s word alone.

Judge Merchan, rereading the same instructions he gave jurors on Wednesday, said, “Under our law, Michael Cohen is an accomplice,” and a defendant can’t be convicted of any crime based only on the testimony of an accomplice unless it is supported by corroborative evidence.

This is just one of the many instructions the judge is rereading for the jury.

Several jurors are heads down, taking notes — 10:29 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan goes over the portion of the instructions that state they do not need to be unanimous in their findings on the unlawful conduct in connection with the underlying election interference crime that prosecutors allege Trump was attempting to cover up by falsifying records.

This particular instruction has caused confusion outside the courthouse.

Though Trump has repeatedly railed about the nonunanimous aspect of that jury instruction, he did not appear to react when the instruction was read anew. He continued to lean back in his chair, eyes closed as Merchan read through the instructions.

Trump will continue to campaign even if convicted — 10:22 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Donald Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump, who was with the former president in court Wednesday and also serves as co-chair of the Republican National Committee, said in a Fox News Channel interview on Thursday that the former president would still try to campaign for the presidency if he’s convicted.

Lara Trump said if Donald Trump is convicted and given a sentence of home confinement, “We will have him doing virtual rallies and campaign events if that is the case. And we’ll have to play the hand that we’re dealt,” according to a transcript of the interview.

The 34 counts against Trump are all the same charge, a low-level felony punishable by up to four years in prison, though it’s not clear that the judge would opt to put Trump behind bars if he’s convicted. Other punishments could include a fine or probation.

Jurors are listening intently as Merchan rereads the instructions — 10:13 a.m.

By the Associated Press

One man presses two fingers to his temple, appearing deep in concentration, as he listens to the judge. Another nods along at certain points. Several are jotting down notes.

A smaller entourage for Trump — 10:08 a.m.

By the Associated Press

As Judge Merchan rereads his instructions to the jury, Trump is sitting at the defense table, with his eyes closed and his head leaning over his right shoulder. He occasionally shifts in his chair and moves his head.

A number of seats in the front two rows of the courtroom — filled through much of the trial by Trump’s supporters and surrogates — sit relatively empty again today because of his smaller entourage. He is joined today by his son Eric Trump and friend Steve Witkoff, but no members of Congress or other members of his family.

The judge has started rereading the requested portion of his instructions to the jury — 10:03 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury has returned to the courtroom — 9:55 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury will hear the requested portion of the instructions first.

The judge also offered them the option of headphones or a speaker to listen to recordings that are in evidence. He asked them to discuss the matter among themselves and send a note later reflecting their decision.

Judge Merchan gives updates on jury notes — 9:50 a.m.

By the Associated Press

On Wednesday the jury had asked Judge Merchan to reread his instructions to them. Merchan subsequently asked the jurors to clarify whether they wanted all of the instructions or only part of them.

The judge said Thursday that he received another jury note, explaining that the jurors want to specifically hear the description of how they are to consider the evidence and what inferences can be drawn from the facts. They also want to hear the description of the law for the charge at issue in the case. Merchan estimates that’s about 30 pages of instructions that he’ll have to reread.

The jury requested headphones to plug into their court-supplied laptop so that they could listen to the evidence recordings. Merchan suggested he could also provide them a speaker to allow everyone to listen to the audio together in the jury deliberation room.

Judge Merchan is back on the bench — 9:38 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump speaks before court — 9:30 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Speaking to reporters before entering the courtroom for jury deliberations, Trump read out comments from pundits critiquing the case.

The former president often does this before and after court, reading off pieces of paper and interspersing the quotes with his own thoughts.

Trump hit on some other familiar themes, citing poll numbers and comparing the police presence near the Manhattan courthouse to those at recent protests on college campuses.

“We’ll be here, it looks like a long time,” he said before heading to the courtroom.

Trump enters the courtroom — 9:26 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump walked into the courtroom clutching a sheet of paper as he surveyed the gallery of reporters and public observers. His son Eric Trump is among the entourage of lawyers and aides that followed him in.

Trump has arrived at the courthouse — 9:19 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump leaves Trump Tower — 8:52 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The former president is headed to the courthouse in his motorcade.

Who is on the jury? — 8:49 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury tasked with deciding whether Trump is guilty of any of 34 felony counts of falsifying his company’s record is comprised of 18 Manhattan residents.

The main jury is a seven-man, five-woman panel. There are also six alternate jurors.

The jury of Manhattanites includes a sales professional, a software engineer, a security engineer, a teacher, a speech therapist, multiple lawyers, an investment banker and a retired wealth manager.

READ MORE

A look back at memorable appearances during Trump’s days in court — 8:43 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Earlier this week, President Biden’s campaign showed up outside the trial with actor Robert De Niro and a pair of former police officers.

Even as Trump and his aides denounce the trial as politically motivated, he has been working to turn the proceedings into an offshoot of his presidential campaign. He’s used his time in front of the cameras outside the courtroom to criticize Biden and showcase a parade of his own political supporters.

Some notable appearances at Trump’s trial include:

• House Speaker Mike Johnson
• Former GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy
• Senator Rick Scott of Florida
• Senator JD Vance of Ohio
• Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton

Thursday, May 30

The jury asked to rehear testimony. Here’s what they requested. — 8:36 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Just hours after embarking on their closed-door discussions, the jury returned with separate notes asking to rehear testimony about the alleged scheme at the heart of the case and to rehear legal instructions from the judge that are meant to guide them in their deliberations.

READ MORE

The meticulous process of gathering requested testimony — 4:42 p.m.

By the Associated Press

One reason why the process is somewhat painstaking is that witnesses aren’t always asked about events in one fell swoop. Sometimes lawyers will return to a topic at different points in their questioning, and the same events can be covered again and again on direct examination and cross-examination. One of the goals of sifting through the transcripts is to ensure that no relevant testimony is left out.

The lawyers also want to make sure that testimony they feel isn’t relevant to the jury’s request is left out of whatever is read back to the panel. Opposing sides often debate what is and isn’t pertinent.

Lawyers work to isolate portions of the trial transcript — 4:26 p.m.

By the Associated Press

With Trump gone from the courtroom, a pair of prosecutors and a pair of Trump lawyers are huddled around the defense table poring over hardcopies of the transcripts.

Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass is leaning over a thick, bound transcript, reading through lines as his colleague Susan Hoffinger jots notes on a notepad. Trump lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove are standing at their spots at the defense table, reading through yet more transcripts and conferring with their opposite numbers. At one point, Steinglass looked up from his volume and flashed a broad smile at Blanche, who reacted in kind — a moment of collegiality among courtroom rivals.

Trump leaves the courtroom — 4:16 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Judge Merchan granted a defense request to allow Trump to return to his waiting area in the courtroom across the hall while the lawyers work on the transcript issue. However, Trump can’t leave the courthouse just yet because the judge wants him nearby in case they require his presence.

He pumped his fist as he walked past reporters but did not stop to speak.

Jurors will resume deliberating on Thursday morning — 4:12 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Judge Merchan said they would be summoned to the courtroom after that, once the transcript pages were ready to be reread aloud for them.

Before excusing jurors, Merchan told them that going forward they can work until 6 p.m. each day — but the decision is up to them on how long they want to go after the normal end of the court day at 4:30 p.m.

Judge Merchan excuses the jury for the day, ending day 1 of deliberations — 4:07 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan said the jury can decide on its own if it wants to hear all of the instructions again, or just some, and then send him another note reflecting that decision.

He estimated that the rereading aloud of the requested testimony would take about a half hour, but he said the relevant transcript pages are still being gathered.

The jurors deliberated for 4½ hours Wednesday.

Jury sends note asking judge to repeat instructions — 4:00 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Judge Merchan said he would bring the jury back into the courtroom to clarify if they wanted to hear all instructions or a portion.

The jury does not have a transcript of witness testimony — 3:38 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury has a verdict sheet and a laptop loaded with documents and other exhibits presented in the case, but not much else. They can’t have any of the transcripts of testimony in the case while deliberating, nor can they be given a written copy of the instructions that were read to them Wednesday morning. Instead, the panel must send a note to the judge each time it wants to have a snippet of testimony read out or get a refresher on the instructions it must follow.

Judge Merchan said it would take some time to gather the requested testimony — 3:22 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He’ll bring jurors into the courtroom and have it read to them once the testimony is collected.

Jury asks for testimony from National Enquirer publisher, Michael Cohen — 3:18 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury has four requests. It wants to hear David Pecker’s testimony regarding the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting where he agreed to identify negative stories for Trump, a phone call he says he had with Trump about the McDougal deal and his decision not to sell the rights to McDougal’s story to Trump. The jury also wants to hear Michael Cohen’s testimony about the same Trump Tower meeting.

The jury has sent its first note to the judge — 3:11 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The note’s contents have not yet been made public, but it should be read in court soon.

The jury, which is deliberating in secret in a side room, indicated it had a note by ringing a courtroom bell at 2:56 p.m., about 3½ hours into deliberations. While deliberating, juries can only communicate with the judge by note. They may involve questions such as a request to hear portions of testimony or rehear certain instructions.

Trump returned to the courtroom after a bell rang, indicating the jury may have a note — 3:09 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Yes, the jurors get to go home — 2:50 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The jury isn’t sequestered, the legal term for isolating the panel from the outside world, and leave court at the end of each day. That was once mandatory for many felony cases in New York state, but the requirement was lifted in 2001, and sequestration is now rare.

Stuck waiting at the courthouse, Trump sounds off on social media — 2:45 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump is continuing to complain on social media as the jury deliberates. “IT IS RIDICULOUS, UNCONSTITUTIONAL, AND UNAMERICAN that the highly Conflicted, Radical Left Judge is not requiring a unanimous decision on the fake charges against me brought by Soros backed D.A. Alvin Bragg,” he wrote. “A THIRD WORLD ELECTION INTERFERENCE HOAX!”

In fact, any verdict has to be unanimous: guilty or not guilty. If the jurors disagree, they keep deliberating. If they get to a point where they are hopelessly deadlocked, then the judge can declare a mistrial.

If they convict, they must agree that Trump created a false entry in his company’s records or caused someone else to do so, and that he did so with the intent of committing or concealing another crime — in this case, violating a state election law.

What the jurors do not have to agree on, however, is which way that election law was violated.

How long the jury will deliberate — 2:24 p.m.

By the Associated Press

They will deliberate as long as they need to. The standard court day runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with a break for lunch (jurors’ meals will be delivered). But judges sometimes extend the hours if jurors wish. In this case, Judge Merchan already has decided that deliberations will proceed on Wednesday, which is normally a day off from the trial.

There’s no limit on how many days deliberations can continue.

President Biden is focused on the American people, not Trump’s trial, the White House says — 1:58 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden isn’t monitoring the start of jury deliberations in the hush-money case against the former president.

“The president’s focused on the American people, delivering for the American people,” she told reporters traveling with Biden to Philadelphia, where he has campaign events scheduled Wednesday. “That’s his focus.”

Fact check: Yes, the jury must come to a unanimous verdict — 1:40 p.m.

By the Associated Press

As the jury begins its deliberations, claims are spreading across social media that Judge Merchan told the panel they don’t need a unanimous verdict to convict Trump.

That’s false.

To convict Trump, Merchan told the jury they will have to find unanimously — that is, all 12 jurors must agree — that the former president created a fraudulent entry in his company’s records or caused someone else to do so, and that he did so with the intent of committing or concealing another crime.

What’s being distorted by some online is the judge’s instruction about how to reach a verdict about that second element.

Prosecutors say the crime Trump committed or hid is a violation of a New York election law making it illegal for two or more conspirators “to promote or prevent the election of any person to a public office by unlawful means.”

Merchan gave the jurors three possible “unlawful means”: falsifying other business records, breaking the Federal Election Campaign Act or submitting false information on a tax return.

For a conviction, each juror would have to find that at least one of those three things happened, but they don’t have to agree unanimously which it was.

Jurors will deliberate through lunch, but no court action will occur — 1:08 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The courtroom is shutting down for its usual lunch hour. No action will occur and no notes will be passed during the 1 to 2:15 p.m. break.

Trump is waiting behind closed doors in a room at the courthouse while the jury deliberates — 12:30 p.m.

By the Associated Press

While there, the former president has continued making a series of posts on his social media network quoting legal commentators and political talking heads who view the case in his favor.

The jury has been sent to deliberate. What exactly does that mean?

By the Associated Press

Jurors can communicate with the court through notes that ask the judge, for instance, for legal guidance or to have particular excerpts of testimony read back to them. But without knowing what jurors are saying to each other, it’s hard to read too much into the meaning of any note.

It’s anyone’s guess how long the jury will deliberate for and there’s no time limit either. The jury must evaluate 34 counts of falsifying business records, so that could take some time, and a verdict might not come by the end of the week.

To reach a verdict on any given count, either guilty or not guilty, all 12 jurors must agree with the decision for the judge to accept it.

Things will get trickier if the jury can’t reach a consensus after several days of deliberations. Though defense lawyers might seek an immediate mistrial, Merchan is likely to call the jurors in and instruct them to keep trying for a verdict and to be willing to reconsider their positions without abandoning their conscience or judgment just to go along with others.

If, after that instruction, the jury still can’t reach a verdict, the judge would have the option to deem the panel hopelessly deadlocked and declare a mistrial.

Trump must stay in the courthouse during deliberations — 11:55 a.m.

By the Associated Press

After jurors left the courtroom to begin deliberations, Judge Juan M. Merchan told Donald Trump and his lawyers that they were required to remain in the courthouse.

“You cannot leave the building. We need you to be able to get here quickly if we do receive a note,” Merchan said.

After Merchan left the bench, Trump turned and walked to chat with his son, Donald Trump Jr. and lawyer Alina Habba.

Merchan addresses alternate jurors — 11:42 a.m.

By the Associated Press

After the main jury in Donald Trump’s hush money case left the courtroom Wednesday, Judge Juan M. Merchan told the six alternates who remain in the courtroom that they will remain on standby in the courthouse as deliberations get underway.

He thanked them for their service and diligence, noting he saw one of the alternates go through three notebooks.

He said, “There might be a need for you at some point in deliberations.”

The alternates will be kept separate from the main jury and must also surrender their phones to court officers while deliberations are in progress. If a member of the main panel is unable to continue, an alternate can take that person’s place and deliberations will begin anew.

Jury begins deliberating — 11:30 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Jury begins deliberating, weighing verdict in first criminal trial of a former US president.

The two elements prosecutors must prove for a guilty verdict — 11:24 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Prosecutors are required to prove two elements for each of the counts in order to find Trump guilty, Judge Merchan told the jurors.

They must find that he “personally or by acting in concert with another person or persons made or caused a false entry in the records” or a business. Prosecutors must also prove that Trump did so with the intent to commit or conceal another crime.

Prosecutors allege the other crime that Trump intended to commit or conceal was a violation of a state election law regarding a conspiracy to promote or prevent an election by unlawful means.

The alleged unlawful means that jurors must consider are:

• Violations of federal campaign finance law
• Falsifying other business records, such as paperwork used to establish the bank account used to pay Stormy Daniels, bank records and tax forms
• Violation of city, state and federal tax laws, including by providing false or fraudulent information on tax returns, “even if it does not result in underpayment of taxes”

Trump’s posture in the courtroom — 11:22 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump has largely continued his posture of leaning back in his chair, sitting relatively still with his eyes closed and head tilted as Merchan instructs the jury. He has occasionally sat up straight and gazed at the judge for a few minutes as he speaks.

At one point, Trump leaned forward to look at the papers on the table in front of him, then relaxed back into his chair.

By the Associated Press

Merchan went over New York’s law against “conspiracy to promote or prevent election,” a statute that’s important to the case. That’s because prosecutors claim that Trump falsified business records in order to cover up alleged violations of the election conspiracy law. The alleged violations, prosecutors say, were hush money payments that really amounted to illegal campaign contributions.

Under New York law, it’s a misdemeanor for two or more people to conspire to promote or prevent a candidate’s election “by unlawful means” if at least one of the conspirators takes action to carry out the plot.

The law also requires that a defendant have the intent unlawfully to prevent or promote the candidate’s election — not just that a defendant knows about the conspiracy or be present when it’s discussed.

In the defense’s closing argument Tuesday, Trump attorney Todd Blanche urged jurors to reject prosecutors’ election conspiracy assertions, insisting that “every campaign in this country is a conspiracy to promote a candidate.”

Explaining accessorial liability — 10:54 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan instructed jurors on the concept of accessorial liability, under which a defendant can be held criminally responsible for someone else’s actions.

That’s a key component of the prosecution’s theory of the case because, while Trump signed some of the checks at issue, people working for his company processed Cohen’s invoices and entered the transactions into its accounting system.

In order to hold Trump liable for those actions, Merchan said jurors must find beyond a reasonable doubt that he solicited, requested or commanded those people to engage in that conduct and that he acted intentionally.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass touched on accessorial liability in his closing argument Tuesday, telling jurors: “No one is saying the defendant actually got behind a computer and typed in the false vouchers or stamped the false invoices or printed the false checks.”

“But he set in motion a chain of events that led to the creation of the false business records,” Steinglass said.

Trump has pleaded not guilty and denies wrongdoing.

Corroborating evidence — 10:43 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Because Cohen is considered an accomplice to the alleged crimes, the judge is instructing the jury that under the law, Trump cannot be convicted solely by Cohen’s testimony unless it is supported by corroborating evidence.

How to judge the truth — 10:41 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan gave the jury some guidance on factors it can use to assess witness testimony, including its plausibility, its consistency with other testimony, the witness’ manner on the stand and whether the person has a motive to lie.

But, the judge said, “There is no particular formula for evaluating the truthfulness and accuracy of another person’s statement.”

The principles he outlined are standard but perhaps all the more relevant after Trump’s defense leaned heavily on questioning the credibility of key prosecution witnesses, including the ex-president’s former personal lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen.

Jurors appear alert and engaged as Merchan instructs them. Several are taking notes as he recites instructions.

Jurors can’t hold Trump’s decision not to testify against him — 10:29 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Echoing standard jury instructions, Merchan notes that even though the defense presented evidence, the burden of proof remains on the prosecutor and that Trump is “not required to prove that he is not guilty.”

“In fact,” noted Merchan, “the defendant is not required to prove or disprove anything.”

In the eyes of the law, Trump and the jurors are peers — 10:27 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan is reminding jurors of their solemn responsibility to decide Trump’s guilt or innocence, gently and methodically reading through standard jury instructions that have a special resonance in the former president’s high-profile case.

“As a juror, you are asked to make a very important decision about another member of the community,” Merchan said, underscoring that — in the eyes of the law — juror and Trump are peers.

Merchan also reminded jurors of their vow, during jury selection, “to set aside any personal bias you may have in favor of or against” Trump and decide the case “fairly based on the evidence of the law.”

Judge Merchan has begun to instruct the jury — 10:16 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Per the law, jurors will not receive copies of the instructions, Merchan says, but they can request to hear them again as many times as they wish.

Trump leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes as Merchan told jurors that he would take about an hour to read them the instructions.

The judge told jurors, “It is not my responsibility to judge the evidence here. It is yours.”

Judge Juan M. Merchan has taken the bench — 10:07 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr. is in the first row of the gallery behind the defense table — 10:01 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump enters the courtroom — 10:00 a.m.

By the Associated Press

He did not stop to speak to reporters as he typically does before court each day.

Trump’s motorcade arrives at court — 9:53 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The former president has arrived at court.

Trump insults Robert De Niro in early morning social media post — 9:45 a.m.

By Amanda Kaufman, Globe Staff

In an early Wednesday morning social media post, Trump berated Robert De Niro, who on Tuesday spoke critically of the former president and the prospects of his reelection outside the Manhattan courthouse where Trump’s hush-money trial is taking place.

The Biden campaign sent De Niro and two former police officers who responded to the Jan. 6 Capitol attack to speak outside of the courthouse in an effort to capitalize on the media attention on the trial.

De Niro said Trump “wants to destroy not only " New York City, “but the country, and eventually, he could destroy the world.”

”If Trump returns to the White House, you can kiss these freedoms goodbye that we all take for granted,” De Niro said on Tuesday.

In his Truth Social post — which the former president sent at nearly 1 a.m. on Wednesday — Trump wrote, “I never knew how small, both mentally and physically, Wacko Former Actor Robert De Niro was,” among other insults.

Trump leaves Trump Tower for the lower Manhattan courthouse — 9:31 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump is on his way to the court house.

Trump’s Wednesday morning social media posts — 9:29 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump posted again on his social media network before he left Trump Tower to head to the courthouse, making another all-caps rant about the trial, the judge and Cohen. He called it a “KANGAROO COURT!” and falsely claimed that the judge barred him from defending himself by claiming that his alleged actions were taken on the advice of his then-lawyer, Cohen. Trump’s lawyers in March notified the court that they would not rely on that defense.

“THERE WAS NO CRIME, EXCEPT FOR THE BUM THAT GOT CAUGHT STEALING FROM ME!” Trump said, apparently referring to Cohen. He added: “IN GOD WE TRUST!”

The gag order prohibits Trump from making statements about witnesses, and he was previously penalized for comments about Cohen. But, it’s unclear if Trump’s latest rant would rise to the level of a violation — or if prosecutors would seek to have Trump sanctioned for it. The judge has also indicated that he’d give Trump leeway in certain instances to respond to attacks from Cohen.

Also in Manhattan criminal court Wednesday: Harvey Weinstein — 9:26 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump won’t be the only notable defendant in Manhattan’s criminal courthouse on Wednesday.

Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein will be in a courtroom two floors below for a hearing in his New York rape case.

Trump’s trial resumes at 10 a.m. on the 15th floor of the courthouse at 100 Centre Street. Weinstein’s hearing is slated for 2:15 p.m. on the 13th floor.

Weinstein faces a retrial as soon as September after New York’s highest court threw out his 2020 conviction last month, ruling that the trial judge unfairly allowed testimony against him based on allegations that weren’t part of the case.

Weinstein had been convicted of rape in the third degree for an attack on an aspiring actor in 2013 and of sexually assaulting a former TV and film production assistant in 2006. Weinstein, 72, has maintained his innocence.

Wednesday’s court hearing will address various legal issues related to the retrial.

Weinstein’s original trial was held in the same courtroom where Trump is now on trial, but the two men are unlikely to bump into each other: Weinstein is in custody and will be brought to and from the courtroom under guard. Trump is not in custody.

READ MORE

How will the jury deliberations work? — 9:23 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The deliberations will proceed in secret, in a room reserved specifically for jurors and in a process that’s intentionally opaque.

Jurors can communicate with the court through notes that ask the judge, for instance, for legal guidance or to have particular excerpts of testimony read back to them. But without knowing what jurors are saying to each other, it’s hard to read too much into the meaning of any note.

By the Associated Press

The former president posted a string of complaints on his social media network shortly after midnight about the gag order (“RESTRICTIVE” and “NOT FAIR”) and about the fact that, as a defendant, he was not allowed to respond or rebut prosecutors’ closing arguments and called it “A DISGRACEFUL PERFORMANCE OF MISREPRESENTATION.” By law, the prosecutor goes last in closing arguments.

He also appeared to reference Michael Cohen, saying, “I DIDN’T HAVE A FIXER, I HAD A LAWYER.” Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass referenced Cohen as Trump’s “fixer” 11 times during his closing.

Trump also made a post insulting Robert De Niro and responding to the actor’s appearance at a Biden campaign news conference Tuesday.

What jurors could do — 9:08 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, charges punishable by up to four years in prison. He has pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing. It’s unclear whether prosecutors would seek imprisonment in the event of a conviction, or if the judge would impose that punishment.

Jurors will have the option of convicting Trump of all counts, acquitting him of all counts, or delivering a mixed verdict in which he is found guilty of some charges and not others. If they deadlock after several days of deliberations and are unable to reach a unanimous verdict, Judge Juan M. Merchan may declare a mistrial.

GOP hugs Trump tighter as hush-money trial comes to close — 9:00 a.m.

By Sam Brodey, Globe Staff

The Manhattan Criminal Court House, where Trump is on trial for allegedly covering up hush-money payments to p*rn actress Stormy Daniels, is the hottest ticket in Republican politics. Instead of driving a wedge between the presumptive 2024 nominee and prominent Republicans, the first-ever criminal trial of a former president has bound them closer together.

Republican elected officials, from the speaker of the House to senators to a phalanx of backbenchers, have ultimately embraced the opportunity to literally stand with Trump in his hour of need.

READ MORE

Wednesday, May 29

Five takeaways from closing arguments — 8:53 a.m.

By The New York Times

A defense lawyer, Todd Blanche, spent three hours Tuesday hammering Michael Cohen, the prosecution’s star witness, including accusing him of perjury. He attacked Stormy Daniels, the adult film actor whose account of a tryst with Trump in 2006 set in motion the charges the former president faces.

The prosecution countered with an even longer, more detailed summation, pushing into the evening. A prosecutor, Joshua Steinglass, guided jurors through reams of evidence they had introduced and elicited, including testimony, emails, text messages and recordings.

READ MORE

Trump leaves the courtroom without speaking — 8:09 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Following the longer-than-usual day in the courtroom, the former president did not give his usual post-court remarks to the press in the hallway.

The plan for Wednesday — 8:07 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan tells jurors he’ll give them instructions on Wednesday before they start deliberating. Court will begin at 10 a.m., the judge said, noting the long day on Tuesday.

Court will go until 4:30 p.m. and they’ll revisit scheduling and the length of days as the week goes on.

As is standard, Merchan reminded both sides to tell any guests that they won’t be permitted to leave the courtroom once he starts reading the jury instructions on Wednesday. Merchan expects those instructions will take about an hour, then jurors will be off to deliberate. Jurors appeared resilient but relieved to be going home as they marched out of the courtroom after the marathon day of summations.

Steinglass finishes his summation — 8:05 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He wrapped by imploring jurors to find Trump guilty of all 34 counts of falsifying business records.

Steinglass said Trump’s intent to defraud “could not be any clearer,” arguing that it would have been far easier for him to pay Daniels directly. Instead, the prosecutor said, he concocted an elaborate scheme and everything he and his cohorts did was “cloaked in lies.”

“The name of the game was concealment and all roads lead inescapably to the man who benefited the most: the defendant, former President Donald Trump,” Steinglass said.

“Donald Trump can’t shoot someone on Fifth Avenue at rush hour and get away with it,” Steinglass said, parroting Trump’s own long-ago remark, prompting an objection from Trump’s lawyer.

Steinglass spoke for over five hours.

Steinglass knows he’s going long — 7:55 p.m.

By the Associated Press

In an acknowledgment of the length of his remarks, Steinglass reminded jurors that the judge would instruct them on the relevant laws “after the summation — that never ends.”

Steinglass also got an unintended laugh, including from some jurors, when he noted that “we’re basically beating a dead horse here” by going over certain evidence yet again. Amid the laughter, he dryly added: “That wasn’t supposed to be funny.”

Steinglass is sprinting through his timeline of events — 7:39 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He’s repeating many of the points he’s already made, albeit with more emphatic takeaways.

Highlighting a phone call between Cohen and Trump on Oct. 8, 2016 — the day after the “Access Hollywood” tape was made public — the prosecutor argued: “There’s just no way — no way! — Cohen wouldn’t tell Mr. Trump about Daniels in that phone call.”

Pointing to more calls, many around the time of key developments in the Daniels negotiations, Steinglass asked, “Is this timing all a coincidence?”

Cohen’s deal to buy Daniels’ silence briefly hit a wall in late October. Her lawyer was frustrated that she hadn’t been paid, Cohen testified. Steinglass showed phone records from that period, telling jurors, “What is clear is that Mr. Cohen is trying to reach Mr. Trump as soon as he learns the Daniels deal is off.”

With the deal back on, Cohen was again making calls to connect with Trump, Steinglass said.

“Just think of the timing of these phone calls, this is absolutely critical,” the prosecutor said. Cohen, he explained, “was seeking the final go-ahead.”

Steinglass reviews his timeline — 7:27 p.m.

By the Associated Press

His voice peppier, the prosecutor is now zipping through his PowerPoint timeline, recapping the events he’s already discussed in detail.

He started with the August 2015 Trump Tower meeting in which Pecker said he told Cohen and Trump he’d be the “eyes and ears” of Trump’s campaign, rooting out negative stories about him, publishing positive pieces and smearing his opponents.

What day is it? — 7:18 p.m.

By the Associated Press

As Steinglass yet again resumed a summation that had already stretched beyond four hours and past 7 p.m., he accidentally referred back to remarks he’d made “yesterday.”

“Or earlier today,” he corrected. “It feels like yesterday.”

And we’re back — 7:15 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan told Steinglass he faces a hard out at 8 p.m. All day, jurors have said they can work until that time, but not later, the judge said.

“Maybe you could have your colleagues hand you a note when it’s 8 o’clock and then at that point we really need to wrap it up,” Merchan told the prosecutor.

“Thanks for sticking with me,” Steinglass told jurors as he settled back in at the podium.

‘Cooperate and you will face the wrath of Donald Trump.’ — 7:10 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Before break, Steinglass showed jurors a series of Trump’s social media posts lashing out at Cohen after his former lawyer defected, which the prosecutor argued was not only designed to punish the former fixer but to signal to other potential witnesses: “Cooperate and you will face the wrath of Donald Trump.”

He also cited lawsuits Trump had filed against Cohen and Daniels as other examples of intimidation.

“The defendant wanted everyone to see the cost of taking him on,” Steinglass said.

A related argument about threats Daniels said she faced after going public prompted Trump’s lawyers to object. Blanche called it “extraordinarily prejudicial.” Steinglass stressed that he wasn’t suggesting Trump was behind the threats, but Merchan told him to move along anyway. The sides argued briefly over that issue while the jury was out of the courtroom for the final recess of the day.

Court is taking another break, but it’s not over — 7:00 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The prosecution’s summation, which began around 2 p.m., is still going. Judge Merchan said this would be the last recess of the day.

Everyone’s powering through — 6:42 p.m.

By the Associated Press

After a brief bench conference, Steinglass is continuing his closing argument. The prosecutor had interrupted himself as the clock neared 6:30 p.m., asking the judge if he should “power through” or stop.

After the bench conference, Steinglass returned to the podium and asked jurors: “You good to go a little bit longer?” They appeared amenable, to which the prosecutor replied with a satisfied: “Alright.”

‘How do you rack up $35,000 worth of legal services in 11 minutes?’ — 6:24 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Had Trump truly been in the dark on the plan to repay Cohen, as the defense contends, Steinglass argues the admittedly frugal businessman would’ve balked at signing $35,000 monthly checks to him. Trump signed nine checks to Cohen totaling $315,000 in 2017, his first year as president.

Trump was aware that Cohen was serving as his personal lawyer, but that Cohen was hardly doing any legal work for him, Steinglass said. Yet, he didn’t object when he came across the $35,000 monthly checks that were sent to the White House for him to sign. Cohen said after leaving the Trump Organization in early 2017, he wasn’t drawing a salary as Trump’s lawyer.

“No, he just signs it. Every month. And he never once picks up that phone. He never once makes further inquiry,” Steinglass said, arguing that even as president, Trump “remained involved even with minor decisions.”

Adding to the seeming artifice of the repayment plan, Cohen sent his last invoice — which stated it was for services rendered in December 2017 — to Trump’s lieutenants at the Trump Organization at 9:11 a.m. on Dec. 1, 2017, Steinglass said.

“How do you rack up $35,000 worth of legal services in 11 minutes?” Steinglass asked.

Steinglass cracks jokes about the length of his presentation, government work — 6:21 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass seems to be trying to stay on the good side of the jury — and cognizant of the length of his presentation.

“I know what you’re thinking. Is this guy going to go through every single month’s worth of checks?” he quipped at one point as he ran through ledger after ledger.

He’s also tried to pepper his closing with occasional humor.

At one point, as he talked about how much money Cohen was making, he said Trump’s former fixer “was making way more money than any government job would ever pay.”

“And don’t I know that,” he added.

The aside drew smiles and chuckles from some of the jurors.

It would be ‘crazy’ to think Weisselberg and Cohen devised the payment plan on their own, Steinglass argued — 6:20 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Surely, if they had, the frugal and detail-oriented Trump would have asked questions about the $35,000 checks to Cohen that came to him to sign, the prosecutor asserted.

“Don’t buy this bogus narrative that the defense is selling — that the defendant was too busy to know what he was signing,” Steinglass urged jurors. “The defendant’s entire business philosophy was and is to be involved in everything, down to negotiating the price of the light bulbs.”

Steinglass says Trump’s own tweets undermine his defense — 6:15 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The prosecutor argued the defense’s characterization of the payments to Cohen as being for legitimate legal expenses is undermined by Trump’s own tweet and the fact that Trump didn’t pay Cohen anything in 2018, despite Cohen performing legal work for Trump that year.

“You’d have to think that despite this mountain of evidence none of that actually happened,” Steinglass said, rhetorically asking jurors: “Does anyone believe that?”

‘The payment has everything to do with the campaign’ — 6:12 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass seized on a 2018 Trump tweet in which the then-president described the arrangement with Cohen as “reimbursem*nt” while insisting it was unrelated to Trump’s candidacy.

“Mr. Cohen, an attorney, received a monthly retainer, not from the campaign and having nothing to do with the campaign, from which he entered into, through reimbursem*nt, a private contract between two parties, known as a non-disclosure agreement, or NDA,” Trump wrote at the time.

Steinglass said that while the payments didn’t come out of campaign funds, “the payment has everything to do with the campaign.”

“And yet they still try to argue that the payments to Cohen in 2017 were for legal services rendered — because to say anything else is to admit that the business records were false, and they can’t do that,” the prosecutor said of his counterparts at the defense table.

The question of Cohen’s timecard — 6:03 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass is telling the jury that Cohen did little work for Trump in 2017, despite the checks he was receiving. Trump’s lawyers contend the payments were for legal services Cohen provided that year.

The prosecutor pointed to Cohen testifying he did only about 10 hours of legal work that year.

“Mr. Cohen spent more time being cross-examined at this trial than he did doing legal work for Donald Trump in 2017,” Steinglass quipped. “Do you think there’s any chance Donald Trump would pay $42,000 an hour for legal work by Michael Cohen?”

But Cohen didn’t suffer, Steinglass said, noting he got a “cool title” that helped him reel in lucrative consulting clients.

The prosecution’s ‘smoking guns’ — 5:47 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass argues the case has “smoking guns” — in the form of handwritten jottings by former Trump company finance chief Allen Weisselberg and ex-controller Jeffrey McConney.

The two documents show calculations related to the payments Cohen got in 2017. They included his reimbursem*nt for the $130,000 he’d paid Daniels, as well as an unrelated reimbursem*nt, a bonus, and money to cover taxes, according to testimony.

While the defense suggested that Cohen was the driving force in the decision to style the payments as fees for legal services, the Weisselberg and McConney notes are “overt manifestations” that that’s not so, the prosecutor argued.

“They are the smoking guns. They completely blow out of the water” the defense’s claims that the payments were for legal work, Steinglass said.

Steinglass picks up his closing arguments after the break — 5:33 p.m.

By the Associated Press

As the prosecution’s summation resumes, Steinglass turned from the hush money arrangements before the 2016 election to the alleged effort to mask Cohen’s reimbursem*nt for the Daniels payout.

“Even after Mr. Trump got elected, he still had to make sure that no one found out about the conspiracy,” the prosecutor maintained.

Trump returns to the courtroom (but not before posting) — 5:24 p.m.

By the Associated Press

With closing arguments stretching into the evening, he fired off two posts on Truth Social before entering the courtroom.

“FILIBUSTER!!” read one. It was followed a few minutes later by: “BORING!”

An unusually late night — 5:23 p.m.

By the Associated Press

While Manhattan famously has a night court that handles arraignments — first court appearances of those recently arrested — it’s quite unusual for state court trials here to run as late as 7 p.m. or 8 p.m.

The judge has been consulting with high-level court security officers, among others, about the plan.

Court takes another break but is not done yet — 5:03 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The court is taking a 20-minute break. Before sending jurors out of the courtroom, Judge Merchan thanked them for making arrangements to stay later than usual.

Merchan says some jurors have made child care and other arrangements allowing them to stay until 7 p.m. or 8 p.m.

“I think right now we’re going to try to finish this out tonight,” he said.

The judge also noted that all of the jurors still looked alert. “I don’t think we’re losing anyone,” he observed.

Steinglass argues Trump’s concern in Daniels deal was the election, not his family — 5:01 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Responding to the defense’s argument that Trump was concerned for his family in the wake of the “Access Hollywood” leak, Steinglass told jurors it’s “no coincidence” that Stormy Daniel’s alleged sexual encounter with Trump “happened in 2006″ but the payment to Daniels didn’t happen until the eve of the 2016 election. That’s because “the defendant’s primary concern was not his family but the election,” Steinglass argued.

‘That’s kind of the whole point, right?’ — 4:52 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Seeking to blunt any questions about the fact that Trump didn’t sign the deal with Daniels — Cohen did — Steinglass argues that the aim was to avoid a paper trail to Trump.

“That’s kind of the whole point, right, to keep him out of it, to keep him away from the documentation?” he suggested.

The prosecutions closing argument stretches into a third hour — 4:49 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass is recapping the details of the back-and-forth between Daniels’ representatives and Cohen over the payoff deal.

Steinglass is supplementing his detailed recitation with phone records, text messages, encrypted communications and excerpts of testimony, seemingly trying to reinforce his theme that there’s a “mountain” of corroboration for the allegations at hand.

Meanwhile, Trump is taking in this leg of the summation with his head back and his eyes closed — a strategy he’s employed throughout the trial.

Steinglass connects the ‘Access Hollywood’ tape and Stormy Daniels’ payment — 4:31 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass stressed that to understand the case against Trump, jurors need to understand the climate in which the deal to pay off Daniels was made — just after the “Access Hollywood” tape leak had “caused pandemonium in the Trump campaign.”

“It’s critical to appreciate this,” Steinglass said. At the same time he was dismissing his words on the tape as “locker room talk,” Trump “was negotiating to muzzle a p*rn star,” the prosecutor said.

“Stormy Daniels was a walking, talking reminder that the defendant wasn’t only words. She would have totally undermined his strategy of spinning away the ‘Access Hollywood’ tape,” Steinglass said.

‘Access Hollywood’ tape a ‘Category 5′ hurricane, prosecutor says — 4:14 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass reminded jurors how Hope Hicks, then the campaign’s communications director, testified that news coverage of the “Access Hollywood” tape knocked a Category 4 hurricane out of the headlines.

The prosecutor dubbed the tape a “Category 5″ hurricane.

Prosecution closing argument turns to ‘Access Hollywood’ tape — 4:14 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass has resumed delivering his closing argument, focusing now on the publication of the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape in October 2016 and the fallout for Trump’s campaign, with just weeks to go before Election Day.

Trump returns to the courtroom chatting with Blanche — 4:13 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche smiled broadly as he trailed just behind the former president.

‘No paper trail’ — 4:11 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Before the break, Steinglass stressed that Cohen’s secret recording, in which he was allegedly briefing Trump on a plan to buy the rights to McDougal’s story from the National Enquirer “shows the defendant’s cavalier willingness to hide this payoff.”

“This shows the defendant suggesting paying in cash,” the prosecutor said as he showed jurors a transcript of the September 2016 recording. “It doesn’t matter if that means a bag of cash or no financing, no lump sum. He’s trying to do it in a way that leaves no paper trail, that’s the whole point.”

“This tape unequivocally shows a presidential candidate actively engaging in a scheme to influence the election by reimbursing AMI for the McDougal story,” Steinglass added. He argued that’s why the defense has tried so hard to discredit it.

Court takes brief afternoon break — 4:07 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump left the court for the recess. As he returned, he turned his head to chat with Blanche. The defense attorney smiled broadly as he trailed just behind the former president.

Steinglass focuses on McDougal — 4:06 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass is taking issue with the defense’s efforts to cast doubt on a September 2016 recording that Cohen made of a conversation with Trump in which the two are allegedly heard discussing a plan to buy the rights to former Playboy model Karen McDougal’s story from the National Enquirer.

Steinglass said the defense had gone to “laughable lengths” to try to undermine the recording, which he described as “nothing short of jaw-dropping.”

Cohen had testified that the recording, which cuts off before the conversation finishes, was interrupted when he received an incoming call.

Defense lawyer Todd Blanche had tried to frame the recording as unreliable and suggested it was actually about a plan to buy a collection of material on Trump that the National Enquirer had been hoarding — not McDougal.

He also questioned whether Trump mentioned a dollar figure that he might have to spend, as Cohen and prosecutors contend, or whether he said something else.

‘Trump is looming behind everything that they’re doing’ — 3:35 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass said joking texts between McDougal’s lawyer Keith Davidson and then-National Enquirer editor Dylan Howard about hypothetical ambassadorships were clear evidence that they knew the deal would benefit Trump’s presidential campaign.

“Throw in an ambassadorship for me. I’m thinking Isle of Mann,” Davidson wrote on July 28, 2016, referring to the British territory Isle of Man.

“I’m going to Make Australia Great Again,” Howard replied.

All joking aside, Steinglass said: “It’s a palpable recognition of what they’re doing. They’re helping Trump get elected.” The prosecutor said the text messages underscore that “Trump is looming behind everything that they’re doing.”

‘What was the defendant’s motivation?’ — 3:30 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Digging further into the two sides’ dispute over the “catch-and-kill” allegations, Steinglass said it doesn’t matter that McDougal preferred a deal that would help her career while not airing her claims of a Trump affair, as her lawyer and others testified.

“Her motivations are totally irrelevant. The question is: What is the defendant’s motivation?” the prosecutor said, adding that that motivation “was to serve the campaign.”

Trump denies any sexual involvement with McDougal.

Steinglass seeks to make ‘catch-and-kill’ connection — 3:20 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass pushed back on Blanche’s contention that the National Enquirer’s deal to bury the Trump Tower doorman’s bogus story wasn’t a form of catch and kill.

Steinglass noted that the National Enquirer amended its source agreement with doorman Dino Sajudin so that he would be paid the agreed upon $30,000 fee within five days of signing the document — instead of upon publication of the story, as had been previously drafted.

“The only reason to kill a bogus story,” certainly wasn’t to act in a financially responsible fashion or satisfy the tabloid’s investors, Steinglass argued, but to be “in service of the defendant’s campaign.”

Prosecutor seeks to tie Trump’s campaign with the National Enquirer — 3:14 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass called the National Enquirer’s work on Trump’s behalf “one of the most valuable contributions that anyone ever made to the Trump campaign.”

“This scheme, cooked up by these three men, could very well be what got President Trump elected,” Steinglass said.

Steinglass hits back at Blanche’s claim that ‘every campaign’ is a conspiracy — 3:03 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Batting back Blanche’s argument that “every campaign in this country is a conspiracy to promote a candidate” and that Trump’s alleged efforts to suppress negative stories were no different, Steinglass said they actually were “the subversion of democracy.”

The purpose of the effort, Steinglass argued, was “to manipulate and defraud the voters, to pull the wool over their eyes in a coordinated fashion.”

Jurors remain attentive — 2:57 p.m.

By the Associated Press

They’re watching Steinglass just as they did Blanche earlier Tuesday. Several jurors take notes — others are locked in, looking on at the prosecutor as he makes his argument.

‘This case is not about Michael Cohen. It’s about Donald Trump’ — 2:55 p.m.

By the Associated Press

After Trump’s lawyer insisted to jurors that the case rested on Cohen and that they couldn’t trust him, Steinglass sought to persuade the group that there is “a mountain of evidence, of corroborating testimony, that tends to connect the defendant to this crime.”

He pointed to testimony from Pecker and others, to the recorded conversation in which Trump and Cohen appear to discuss the McDougal deal, and to Trump’s own tweets.

“It’s not about whether you like Michael Cohen. It’s not about whether you want to go into business with Michael Cohen. It’s whether he has useful, reliable information to give you about what went down in this case, and the truth is that he was in the best position to know,” the prosecutor said.

Steinglass accused the defense of wanting to make this case all about Cohen.

“It isn’t. That’s a deflection,” he said. “This case is not about Michael Cohen. It’s about Donald Trump.”

Steinglass channels his inner thespian, acts out a hypothetical call between Cohen and Trump — 2:52 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Steinglass used a bit of stagecraft to challenge the defense’s assertion that Cohen was lying about the subject of an Oct. 24, 2016, phone call in which he says he told Trump the Daniels payoff was being finalized.

Steinglass demonstrated a hypothetical version of the phone call, showing jurors how Cohen could’ve covered multiple subjects in less than a minute.

Cohen said he called Trump’s bodyguard that night because he knew they’d be together and that’s how he sometimes got ahold of Trump.

Trump’s lawyers, citing phone and text message records, contend the true nature of the call had to do with harassing phone calls Cohen was dealing with, and that he was calling the bodyguard, Keith Schiller, to talk about that issue.

“To them, that is the big lie,” Steinglass said, characterizing the defense argument.

Cohen’s actual call to Schiller’s phone number lasted 96 seconds, according to phone records. Steinglass showed, with his hypothetical, that Cohen could’ve spoken to Schiller about the prank calls, asked him to pass the phone to Trump and then discussed the Daniels deal with Trump, all in 49 seconds.

As he finished the demonstration, Steinglass took a swipe at his own acting skills, telling jurors: “Sorry if I didn’t do a good job.”

One juror cracked a slight smile as Steinglass acted out the hypothetical call.

‘We didn’t pick him up at the witness store’ — 2:46 p.m.

By the Associated Press

“We didn’t choose Michael Cohen to be our witness. We didn’t pick him up at the witness store,” Steinglass said. “The defendant chose Michael Cohen to be his fixer because he was willing to lie and cheat on the defendant’s behalf.”

Steinglass doesn’t ask jurors to sympathize with Cohen, but he does want them to understand his motives — 2:43 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The defense portrayed Cohen as a lying opportunist who has profited off his hatred of Trump. Prosecutors, on the other hand, are suggesting that the disbarred attorney had little choice but to parlay his history with Trump into books, a podcast, merchandise and more.

“I’m not asking you to feel bad for Michael Cohen. He made his bed,” Steinglass told jurors. “But you can hardly blame him for making money from the one thing he has left, which is his knowledge of the inner workings of the Trump Organization.”

‘Stormy Daniels is the motive,’ says Steinglass — 2:40 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Daniels’ at times “cringeworthy” testimony about a sexual encounter she says she had with Trump in 2006 was vital because it “only reinforces his incentive to buy her silence,” Steinglass said.

The prosecutor said Daniels’ account of her hotel-suite meeting with Trump — replete with details of the décor and what she saw when she snooped in Trump’s toiletry kit — was full of touchstones “that kind of ring true.”

“Her story is messy. It makes people uncomfortable to hear. It probably makes some of you uncomfortable to hear. But that’s kind of the point,” Steinglass said.

He told jurors: “In the simplest terms, Stormy Daniels is the motive.”

“We don’t have to prove that sex actually took place, but the defendant knew what happened in that hotel room and the extent that you credit her testimony, that only reinforces his incentive to buy her silence,” Steinglass argued.

Steinglass rebuffs the defense’s efforts to discredit Michael Cohen’s testimony — 2:33 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He said that, of course, the jury should take Cohen’s past dishonesty into account.

“How could you not?” he asked.

But he said that Cohen’s anger is understandable given that, “To date, he’s the only one that’s paid the price for his role in this conspiracy.”

Cohen, Steinglass argued, did Trump’s bidding for years, was his right-hand man, and then, when things went bad, was cut lose and thrown under the bus.

“Anyone in Cohen’s shoes would want the defendant to be held accountable,” he argued.

Allegations of extortion are ‘not a defense to election fraud’ — 2:24 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Seeking to rebut the defense’s claim that Stormy Daniels was trying to “extort” Trump, Steinglass noted that her representatives initially sought to sell the story to media outlets, not to Trump. The prosecutor also cited Daniels’ testimony, where the actor explained why she felt going public was the best way to protect herself and her family from pressure to stay silent.

Regardless, allegations of extortion are “not a defense to election fraud,” the prosecutor said.

“You don’t get to commit election fraud or falsify business records because you believe you’ve been victimized,” he told jurors.

Trump watches as the prosecution’s closing arguments begin — 2:21 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump is sitting at the defense table with his body angled toward Steinglass, listening as the prosecutor speaks.

He’s sitting between his attorneys Emil Bove and Todd Blanche, who gave the defense’s closing argument earlier in the day.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass begins his closing argument — 2:14 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He speaks from the same podium that Blanche used, looking directly at jurors from a position between the prosecution and defense tables.

“This case, at its core, is about a conspiracy and a cover-up,” Steinglass said as he began his remarks.

Prosecutors have presented “powerful evidence of the defendant’s guilt,” he said.

Judge tells jurors they must disregard ‘improper’ comment from Trump’s lawyer that they shouldn’t send him to prison — 2:13 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Merchan tells jurors that Blanche’s comment asking jurors not to send Trump to prison “was improper and you must disregard it.” He said jurors are not to consider possible punishment in their deliberations and that sentencing decisions are solely up to him.

Robert De Niro’s verbal spat with Trump supporters — 2:10 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump posted a video on his social media network of one of his supporters getting into a shouting match with actor Robert De Niro after the actor’s comments outside court.

“You are gangsters. You are gangsters,” De Niro said.

“You’re washed up,” the man replied.

De Niro responded with an expletive as he was ushered away surrounded by cameras.

Another man, wearing a red “Make America Great Again Hat,” yelled, “You’re nobody. Your movies suck. You’re trash.”

District Attorney Alvin Bragg has returned to the courtroom — 1:56 p.m.

By the Associated Press

He watched the defense summation Tuesday morning and is now set to watch as Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass soon delivers the prosecution’s closing argument.

Trump’s kids speak in support of their father — 1:48 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump’s children held a news conference outside the courthouse during a lunch break, with Donald Trump Jr. echoing Blanche and calling Cohen “the GOAT [greatest of all time] of liars.”

He said the Biden campaign holding a news conference at the trial showed it was a “political persecution” and in using one of his father’s frequent terms, called it a “witch hunt.”

“This is a sham. This is insane. It needs to stop,” he said.

His brother Eric Trump decried “political warfare” and said his father is the “toughest man I’ve ever seen” and “he endures this nonsense every single day.”

“I want to say sorry to the jury that’s in there. This has been the greatest colossal waste of time,” he said.

Lara Trump, his wife and the Republican National Committee co-chair, said that Bragg, the top law enforcement officer in New York, was focusing on her father-in-law instead of crime in New York. “If they can profit off it on the other side, so can we,” she said, and plugged Trump’s campaign website where donations can be accepted.

By the Associated Press

Before the break, the judge scolded Blanche for imploring jurors not to send Trump to prison on the words of Michael Cohen and said he would instruct the jury to disregard the comment.

Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass had taken issue with what he cast as a “ridiculous comment” and asked the judge to intervene.

“I think that saying that was outrageous,” Merchan scolded Blanche. “Someone who’s been a prosecutor as long as you have and a defense attorney as long as you have, you know that making a comment like that is highly inappropriate. It’s simply not allowed. Period.”

If Trump is convicted, sentencing will be up to the judge, not the jury.

Trump has pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, charges punishable by up to four years in prison. It’s unclear whether prosecutors would seek imprisonment in the event of a conviction, or if the judge would impose that punishment.

Court is breaking until 2 p.m. — 12:54 p.m.

By the Associated Press

At that time, the prosecution will give its closing.

Blanche concludes his closing argument — 12:53 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche finishes his summation by telling jurors the case “isn’t a referendum on your views of President Trump.”

“This is not a referendum on the ballot box — who you voted for in 2016 or 2020, who you plan on voting for in 2024. That is not what this is about,” the attorney told jurors. “The verdict you have to reach has to do with the evidence you heard in this courtroom,” and nothing else, he reminds them.

He implored the jury to return a quick not-guilty verdict.

Blanche labels Cohen ‘the human embodiment of reasonable doubt’ — 12:52 p.m.

By the Associated Press

“He lied to you repeatedly. He lied many, many times before you even met him. His financial and personal well-being depends on this case. He is biased and motivated to tell you a story that is not true,” the attorney told jurors.

Mimicking the acronym GOAT, used primarily in sports for “greatest of all time,” Blanche also declared Cohen “the GLOAT: the greatest liar of all time.”

Defense lawyer gives ‘Top 10′ list as his closing argument nears end — 12:44 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche is wrapping up his testimony with what he’s calling a “Top 10″ list of reasonable doubt.

Among the arguments: Cohen created the invoices that he submitted to the Trump Organization, not Trump; there’s no proof that Trump knew what Trump Organization staffers were doing with the payments; there’s no evidence that Trump had an intent to defraud; and there’s no evidence of a conspiracy to influence the 2016 election.

“The bottom line is, there is no falsification of business records,” Blanche said.

Cohen’s admitted obsession with Trump — 12:40 p.m.

By the Associated Press

As he nears the end of his summation, Blanche is reminding jurors of Cohen’s self-admitted fixation on Trump — and his desire to see him behind bars. He played short clips of Cohen’s podcast in which he commended District Attorney Alving Bragg and said that the idea of seeing the former president booked on criminal charges “fills me with delight.” The case against Trump is built around testimony from “a witness that outright hates the defendant, wants him in jail, is actively making money off that hatred,” Blanche said.

While Cohen has testified that he lied to protect Trump, his family and others, Blanche asserted that the ex-lawyer “is lying simply to protect Michael Cohen and nobody else. Period.”

Blanche calls Cohen ‘an MVP of liars’ — 12:39 p.m.

By the Associated Press

The defense lawyer’s voice grew to a roar — the loudest he’s been all morning — as he declared that Cohen lied about speaking to Trump by phone about the Daniels arrangement on Oct. 24, 2016.

“It was a lie,” Blanche said. “That was a lie and he got caught red-handed.”

Blanche called Cohen “literally like an MVP of liars.”

“He lied to Congress. He lied to prosecutors. He lied to his family and business associates,” he said.

Defense sharpens critique of ‘catch and kills’ — 12:35 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche questioned the prosecution’s narrative that the Daniels payment in October 2016 was part of a conspiracy amongst Trump, Cohen and the National Enquirer to suppress negative stories about the then-candidate through the practice known as “catch and kill.”

Cohen had known about Daniels’ claim since it was published without her permission on a gossip website in 2011, Blanche said, and Daniels had authorized her manager to seek offers to sell the story in early 2016, after Trump had started running for president.

“Why did it not go anywhere for months and months and months if there was a catch-and-kill scheme?” Blanche asked.

Cohen agreed to pay Daniels in the final weeks of the 2016 campaign, after the leak of the “Access Hollywood” tape.

Blanche reminded jurors of the two other stories that prosecutors say were buried through “catch and kill.” The National Enquirer paid $30,000 for a since-disproven rumor from a Trump Tower doorman and $150,000 to McDougal for her claim of an affair with Trump, though publisher David Pecker testified the tabloid wasn’t interested in pursuing her story at first because it couldn’t be corroborated.

Pecker said he refused to pay Daniels because he didn’t want to shell out any more money for Trump without getting repaid, leaving Cohen to make the deal himself.

Blanche suggested the publisher didn’t want anything to do with the story anyway.

“That’s our conspiracy? That’s the three catch and kills?” Blanche said.

Sticky notes — 12:32 p.m.

By the Associated Press

A yellow sticky note affixed to the papers Trump carried into court read, “This case should be dismissed by the judge but it’s totally corrupt.” Images of the handwritten note were captured when news photographers were briefly allowed into the courtroom before proceedings started Tuesday.

The note looks like Trump’s handwriting, in his preferred thick black marker. Trump has in the past carried reminder notes when speaking before cameras about significant news. When he spoke outside his first impeachment trial as president, he carried a handwritten note that said, “I want no quid pro quo.” When he spoke at the White House in 2019 about his push to try to address infrastructure, photographers captured him holding a note that said, “They want to impeach over acts that they did” and “I’m going to keep working for the American people.”

The defense downplays the ‘Access Hollywood’ tape — 12:28 p.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche is trying to downplay the fallout from the “Access Hollywood” tape, which sent Trump’s 2016 campaign into a tailspin, telling the jury: “It was not a doomsday event.”

Blanche conceded that Trump was bothered by the story. “Nobody wants their family to be subjected to that type of thing,” he said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re running for office, if you’re running ‘The Apprentice’ ... Nobody wants their family exposed to that type of story.”

Nonetheless, he argued characterizations of the tape as devastating were an exaggeration. He pointed to testimony from Trump’s former assistant Madeleine Westerhout, whom he said cast the fallout as “a couple of days of frustration and consternation.”

Westerhout, who was then working for the Republican National Committee in close coordination with the Trump campaign, had testified that the tape “rattled the RNC leadership” but that Trump wasn’t thrown by it.

RNC Chair Reince Priebus had told Trump after the tape was released that he had two choices: to drop out of the race or lose by the largest margin in history, Trump’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon has recounted.

Blanche turns his attention to Stormy Daniels — 11:58 a.m.

By the Associated Press

As Blanche resumed the defense’s summation, he pointed out that Daniels issued two statements in 2018 denying that she’d ever had a sexual encounter with Trump. She testified that she signed off on them at her lawyer’s urging.

And we’re back— 11:50 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche says he has 30-40 minutes left in his closing statement. Judge Merchan says the jury is willing to stay longer to hear both closings today.

“We may have to make a snack run,” Merchan said.

The court is taking its normal 10-minute morning break — 11:38 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump patted his daughter Tiffany on the arm and smiled at her as he walked past her on the way out of the courtroom. She smiled back at him.

He did not speak to reporters as he exited the courtroom.

Blanche argues ‘people already knew’ about Stormy Daniels’ claims — 11:37 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Turning to Daniels’ story, Blanche noted that her allegations of a sexual encounter with Trump were aired on a gossip site in 2011, four years before Trump announced his presidential candidacy. Trump has denied having sex with Daniels.

“So how could this issue have influenced the election?” Blanche argued. “People already knew about the allegations.”

At the behest of Daniels and Cohen, the story was taken off the site.

Blanche asserted that the real impetus behind Daniels’ interest in making a deal in 2016 was that some people wanted to use the election as pressure to “extort” Trump.

Defense denies recorded conversation between Trump and Cohen was about a p*rn star payoff — 11:33 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche took aim at a key piece of prosecution evidence: the secret recording Cohen says he made of himself briefing Trump on a plan to buy the rights to McDougal’s story from the National Enquirer.

Blanche said the September 2016 recording, which cuts off before the conversation finishes, is unreliable and isn’t about McDougal at all — but rather a plan to buy a collection of material that the tabloid had been hoarding on Trump. Cohen has said the audio cut off because the iPhone he was using to make the recording was receiving a phone call.

“There is no doubt that this recording discussed AMI and discussed Mr. Pecker,” Blanche said, referring to the National Enquirer’s parent company and then-publisher. “There is a lot of doubt that it discussed Karen McDougal.”

After playing parts of the recording, Blanche urged jurors to trust their ears when deciphering a key part — whether Trump mentioned a dollar figure that he might have to spend, as Cohen and prosecutors contend, or whether he said something else.

“What do we got to pay for this? One-fifty?” Trump said, according to Cohen and prosecutors, as in $150,000.

“Listen to the recording. See if you hear one-fifty,” Blanche told jurors.

Trump campaign hosts news conference to rebut De Niro, Jan. 6 officers — 11:21 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump’s campaign staffers held their own news conference outside the courthouse in the exact same spot where actor Robert De Niro and Jan. 6 officers had just spoken on behalf of the Biden campaign.

Jason Miller, Trump’s senior campaign advisor, called De Niro “a washed-up actor,” and said the news conference showed that the trial was political.

“After months of saying politics had nothing to do with this trial, they showed up and made a campaign event out of a lower Manhattan trial day for President Trump,” Miller said.

Karoline Leavitt, the campaign press secretary, called the Biden campaign “desperate and failing” and “pathetic” and said their event outside the trial was “a full-blown concession that this trial is a witch hunt that comes from the top.”

Blanche argues a second AMI deal was ‘not a catch-and-kill’ — 11:17 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Taking aim at prosecutors’ portrayal of Karen McDougal’s deal with AMI as part of the purported hush money conspiracy, Blanche emphasized testimony from her lawyer and others that she didn’t even want her claim published.

Rather, Blanche said the former Playboy model wanted to reenergize her career by getting into magazines, according to the testimony — though McDougal herself didn’t testify.

“This was not a catch-and-kill,” Blanche said.

Blanche suggests Cohen tailored his testimony after seeing what another witness said about him — 11:11 a.m.

By the Associated Press

On the witness stand as the last prosecution witness, Cohen stressed that he’d routinely update Trump on tasks he’d performed on his behalf so that he’d get credit for doing them. Cohen said he wanted to “obtain credit” so that Trump “understood that I was accomplishing what he wanted.”

Blanche reminded jurors that Cohen acknowledged following the case closely prior to testifying, noting that Trump’s aide, confidante and White House Communications Director Hope Hicks testified 10 days before he did that Cohen is “the kind of person who seeks credit.”

‘This isn’t a catch-and-kill’ — 11:08 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche has taken issue with the notion that there was a conspiracy to suppress negative stories to help Trump’s campaign. Blanche pointed to AMI’s $30,000 payment to Dino Sajudin, a former Trump Tower doorman who falsely alleged the former president had fathered a child out of wedlock. It was one of three potentially damaging stories the tabloid did not run.

Blanche pointed to Pecker’s testimony that he saw the doorman story as a potential blockbuster and would gladly have published it if it had been true.

“This isn’t a catch-and-kill. This is an opportunity,” Blanche said. “It was worth too much to catch and kill, full stop.”

He also noted Pecker had testified that the tabloid only published about half the stories they purchased.

“That’s meaningful. That matters,” he told the jury.

Blanche urges jurors to disregard concerns over ‘conspiracy’ — 10:52 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche implored the jury to reject the prosecution’s contention that Trump engaged in a conspiracy to influence the 2016 election by involving himself in efforts to bury negative stories about him — and to reject the allegation that, after the fact, he falsified records of Cohen’s payments to hide that conspiracy.

“The government wants you to believe that President Trump did these things with his records to conceal efforts to promote his successful candidacy in 2016, the year before,” Blanche said.

“Even that, even if you find that is true, that is not enough ... it doesn’t matter if there’s a conspiracy to win an election. Every campaign in this country is a conspiracy to promote a candidate, a group of people who are working together to help somebody win.”

Blanche notes Trump watches his finances carefully — 10:49 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Cohen got $420,000 in all from Trump in 2017, a sum that the ex-lawyer and prosecutors have said included the $130,000 reimbursem*nt related to Daniels, a $50,000 repayment for an unrelated expense and a $60,000 bonus. On top of that, they’ve said, there was extra money to cover taxes that would be due on the $130,000 as income — taxes that wouldn’t apply if it had simply been paid as a business expense reimbursem*nt.

“That is absurd,” Blanche told jurors, pointing to “all the other evidence you heard about how carefully President Trump watches his finances.”

The defense had previously argued Tuesday that Trump may not have been fully aware of all his invoices.

Biden campaign deploys actor Robert De Niro, Jan. 6 first responders near Trump’s trial — 10:45 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The Biden campaign has sent Robert De Niro and two law enforcement officers who defended the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, not far from the criminal court where Donald Trump’s hush money trial is happening.

Speaking while the former president is stuck in court, De Niro said Trump wants to “destroy not only the city, but the country and eventually he could destroy the world.”

As he spoke, Trump protesters screamed anti-Biden chants.

Blanche further lays into Cohen’s credibility — 10:39 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche argued that the key prosecution witness was lying when he said he was working for free as Trump’s personal lawyer once Trump became president.

“What the government did for the past five weeks, at the end of the day, is ask you to believe the man who testified two weeks ago: Michael Cohen,” Blanche told jurors. “Michael Cohen asked you to ignore the documents, ignore what the email says about sending a retainer agreement sought by Mr. Weisselberg, asked you to believe that he worked for free.”

As Trump was getting ready to move to the White House, Cohen testified he was upset that his annual Trump Organization holiday bonus had been slashed from $150,000 to $50,000. Blanche asked, in light of that frustration, was Cohen really going to work for free?

“Is that the man that testified, or is that a lie?” Blanche asked.

Defense stresses Trump was extremely busy when signing checks — 10:35 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche stressed that Trump was busy during the time when he signed the checks at the heart of the case.

“It matters where President Trump was,” at this time Blanche said.

He noted Trump assistant Madeleine Westerhout had testified that Trump would sometimes sign checks while meeting with people or while on the phone, not knowing what they were.

Blanche argued it was unreasonable to suggest Trump was aware of the details of every invoice just because he knew of some. “That is a stretch and that is reasonable doubt, ladies and gentlemen,” he said.

Accounts payable takes center stage — 10:32 a.m.

By the Associated Press

In an effort to show Trump was distant from the transactions at the heart of the charges. Blanche focused for a bit on a February 2017 email that then-Trump Organization controller Jeffrey McConney sent to an accounts payable staffer, telling her how to handle the payments to Cohen.

“Post to legal expenses. Put ‘retainer for the months of January and February 2017′ in the description,” the email read in part.

McConney testified that he never talked to Trump about how to characterize the payments and was “just taking information from the invoice” Cohen had submitted.

How did Cohen get paid? — 10:25 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche is getting into the details of how payments to Cohen were made, first through a trust set up to hold Trump’s assets while he was in office, then through Trump’s personal bank account with checks signed by the then-president.

“This was a very confusing time for the Trump Organization,” Blanche said. There were a lot of adjustments being made as Trump’s assets were put under the trust’s control and it was the first time in decades that Trump wasn’t in charge, Blanche said.

At one point, early in the repayment process in 2017, then-Trump Organization finance chief emailed a subordinate that it was OK to pay Cohen out of the trust per an agreement with Trump’s sons, Eric and Donald Trump Jr. who were running the Trump Organization’s day-to-day operations at the time. Both were in court Tuesday.

Blanche questioned why, if prosecutors allege Trump was involved in a conspiracy to conceal the nature of the payments, the sons he put in charge of his company weren’t called to the witness stand. “Guess who else you didn’t hear from at this trial? Don or Eric,” Blanche said.

Don’t believe everything you read — 10:22 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche took aim at the prosecution’s use of excerpts from Trump’s book to attempt to portray him as a detail-oriented micromanager who would be fully aware of any money his company was spending.

The books were from a decade ago, if not older, and were written with the help of ghostwriters, Blanche told the jury.

“You should be suspicious. That’s a red flag,” Blanche said in an effort to preempt the prosecution’s closing arguments.

‘Michael Cohen was President Trump’s personal attorney. Period,’ Blanche says — 10:20 a.m.

By the Associated Press

A key part of prosecutors’ claims is that Cohen wasn’t being paid for legal work in 2017, but rather was being reimbursed in a veiled way for the Daniels payment. Blanche pointed to emails and testimony showing that Cohen did indeed work on some legal matters for Trump that year.

While Cohen characterized that work as “very minimal,” Blanche argued otherwise.

“Cohen lied to you. Cohen lied to you,” Blanche said, his voice getting more emphatic.

Blanche noted that Cohen went on TV to discuss his role as Trump’s personal lawyer and put the title in the signature block of every email he sent. “This was not a secret. Michael Cohen was President Trump’s personal attorney. Period,” Blanche said.

Biden and Trump campaigns to hold dueling press conferences outside the courthouse — 10:06 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Biden’s campaign announced that it would hold an event with “special guests” as closing arguments are underway.

Trump spokesman Jason Miller says the former president’s allies will respond with their own event immediately following Biden’s. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter that Biden’s allies “aren’t in PA, MI, WI, NV, AZ or GA - they’re outside the Biden Trial against President Trump,” adding: “It’s always been about politics.”

Welcome to Todd Blanche’s PowerPoint presentation — 10:02 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The defense is using a PowerPoint presentation as it begins its summation and tries to shift blame to Michael Cohen and the Trump Organization.

Blanche is showing the jury copies of the invoices, vouchers and checks that are at the heart of the case — vouchers and checks he says were entered and prepared by the company’s accounting department.

The PowerPoint also notes Cohen sent the invoices for his services. None of the invoices were sent directly to then-President Trump, Blanche says.

Expect the defense to lay into Michael Cohen’s testimony — 9:59 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Blanche laid into key prosecution witness Michael Cohen and told jurors the president’s former fixer would come up repeatedly throughout his summation.

“You’re going to hear me talk a lot about Michael Cohen, and for good reason. You cannot convict President Trump, you cannot convict President Trump of any crime beyond a reasonable doubt on the word of Michael Cohen,” Blanche said.

Cohen “told you a number of things that were lies, pure and simple,” the lawyer added.

Jurors ‘should want and expect more’ than the testimony they’ve heard — 9:57 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Insisting that prosecutors haven’t proven their case, Blanche tells jurors they “should want and expect more” than Cohen’s testimony, or that of a Trump Organization employee accounts payable staffer talking about how she processed invoices or the testimony given by Daniels’ lawyer Keith Davidson. Blanche argues that Davidson “was really just trying to extort money from President Trump” in the lead-up to the 2016 election.

“The consequences of the lack of proof that you all heard over the past five weeks is simple: It is a not guilty verdict, period.”

The evidence in this case ‘should leave you wanting,’ Blanche tells jurors — 9:46 a.m.

By the Associated Press

“President Trump is innocent. He did not commit any crimes and the district attorney has not met their burden of proof. Period.”

Trump lawyer Todd Blanche has begun delivering his closing argument — 9:42 a.m.

By the Associated Press

He begins by thanking jurors for their service.

Judge Merchan instructs the jury — 9:41 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Jurors have taken their seats in the courtroom and are attentive as Merchan explains that by law the defense must go first and prosecutors must go last.

The scene in the courtroom before closing statements — 9:37 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump stood and looked back for a moment after he arrived at the defense table. He’s sitting between two of his attorneys: Todd Blanche and Emil Bove.

Trump appeared animated before the proceedings began, gesturing and chatting with his lawyers.

Seated behind Trump are members of his family, including his sons Eric and Donald Trump Jr. and his daughter Tiffany.

How long is this going to take? — 9:36 a.m.

By the Associated Press

As today’s closing arguments are set to begin, defense lawyer Todd Blanche says he expects to speak for about 2½ hours. Prosecutor Joshua Steinglass says he may go as long as 4½ hours.

Trump calls today ‘a dark day in America,’ ‘a very sad day’ — 9:33 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Trump spoke to reporters before heading into the courtroom reading off quotes from political and legal commentators who have attacked the case, a feature Trump has made a regular part of his trial routine. He called the judge “corrupt” and “conflicted” but said he couldn’t speak about it because of the gag order.

“We’ll see how it goes. This is a very dangerous day for America. It’s a very sad day,” Trump said.

He was accompanied by three of his children, Don Jr., Eric and Tiffany, along with one of his de facto campaign managers Susie Wiles.

The prosecution team has entered the courtroom — 9:16 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The group is led by Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass, who is expected to make the prosecution’s closing argument. As has been his routine, Steinglass walked in carrying a file box full of papers.

Trump arrives at the courthouse — 9:13 a.m.

By the Associated Press

A small group of supporters wearing red “Make America Great Again” hats yelled “We love Trump” outside the courthouse.

Trump waved and gave them a thumbs-up through the window as his car passed.

Trump leaves Trump Tower — 8:43 a.m.

By the Associated Press

The former president is in his motorcade, headed to the courthouse for closing arguments.

Several Trump family members will appear in court today — 8:23 a.m.

By the Associated Press

They include his sons, Don Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, daughter-in-law Lara Trump, daughter Tiffany Trump and her husband Michael Boulos.

Other family members have not yet joined him in court, including his wife, former first lady Melania Trump, and his eldest daughter, Ivanka Trump.

Tuesday, May 28

What happens during closing arguments? — 8:16 a.m.

By the Associated Press

Prosecutors and defense lawyers will have their final opportunity to address the jury in closing arguments expected to last for much of the day, if not all of it.

The arguments don’t count as evidence in the case charging Trump with falsifying business records to cover up hush money payments during the 2016 presidential election to a p*rn star who alleged she had a sexual encounter with him a decade earlier. They’ll instead function as hourslong recaps of the key points the lawyers want to leave jurors with before the panel disappears behind closed doors for deliberations.