With the conflicting trial date in Washington, the judge in the New York case—the first of four indictments brought against Trump last year—has long fought defense requests to delay the March 25 start date. The judge correctly assumed that the former president's legal schedule might change as the trial drew near.
The last elements are anticipated to be worked out during Trump's pretrial hearing, which is scheduled for February 15 in Manhattan court. The New York lawsuit appears to be started promptly.
Prosecutors and attorneys for Trump have reportedly started briefing the court on jury selection processes, and some witnesses have reported receiving instructions to be prepared to testify.
As part of his alleged efforts to conceal payments made on the Republican's behalf to bury unfavorable news before to his 2016 victory over Democrat Hillary Clinton, Trump reportedly logged the payments as legal expenditures in the New York case. There is no assurance of jail time, but a guilty judgment would add Trump to the historic list of previous presidents convicted of a felony, which might hurt his bid for reelection.
Critics of Trump and his opponents' campaign staff have long griped about the fact that the first indictment was against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. They argue that this served to mitigate the electoral impact of subsequent, more severe indictments, as voters were disinterested or confused by the sheer number of cases.
In recent weeks, Bragg has chosen to refer to his case as "election interference" rather than "hush money." However, this time, it involves underhanded tactics during Trump's 2016 presidential campaign.
At the same time, Trump is facing dozens of criminal accusations in Florida related to the alleged unlawful retention of secret papers at his Mar-a-Lago club. There is still time to move the trial date of the case from May 20 to a later date.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has filed a second lawsuit against him in Georgia, this time alleging that he conspired to rig the 2020 election in that state. A trial date has not been scheduled.
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