Former US President Donald Trump was found guilty on all counts on Thursday at his criminal trial in New York for concealed payments to an X-rated movie star. This verdict, described as an earthquake for the former American president in the middle of the presidential campaign, comes after two days of deliberations where the 12 jurors unanimously declared Trump guilty of 34 offenses of falsifying accounting documents. These maneuvers aimed to hide a payment of $130,000 to actress Stormy Daniels, in order to avoid a sex scandal at the end of her 2016 presidential campaign.
This verdict, however, does not prevent the 77-year-old Republican billionaire from running in the presidential election in November, against Democrat Joe Biden. Sentencing will be set later by Judge Juan Merchan, whom Trump called “corrupt” outside of court. In theory, he risks up to four years in prison, but the magistrate could also impose a suspended probationary sentence or community service.
The consequences of this verdict on the election remain uncertain. Although some polls indicate that pro-Trump voters may give up voting for him, the former president calls his legal troubles a “witch hunt” orchestrated by Democrats. Deprived of an on-the-ground campaign, Trump used his trial to capture media attention, speaking regularly outside the courtroom.
Mackenson PHANOR
