Trial against Trump Organization begins amid Trump's other charges
The jury, comprising 130 candidates, is being trickled down to eliminate any potential Trump supporters or opponents to avoid any bias in the final verdict.
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Donald Trump and his children, Eric, Donald Jr., and Ivanka (Vanity Fair)
New York witnessed on Monday the beginning of the trial of Donald Trump's family business, the Trump Organization, for fraud and tax evasion, which Trump called a "witch hunt".
The business is currently run by Trump's two sons, Donald Jr and Eric Trump, and if found guilty of hiding compensation paid to executives between the years 2005 and 2021, the organization could be fined over $1.5 million.
"The highly partisan Democrat Witch Hunt goes on, this time in New York... right during the important Mid-Term Elections, of course," Trump said on social media.
In August, Trump claimed to have "no choice" but to invoke the Fifth Amendment while asked questions under oath in New York over accusations of fraud in his family business. The Fifth Amendment of the US constitution allows individuals to remain silent to protect themselves against self-incrimination under questioning.
"When your family, your company, and all the people in your orbit have become the targets of an unfounded, politically motivated Witch Hunt supported by lawyers, prosecutors, and the Fake News Media, you have no choice," Trump claimed.
According to US news outlets, Judge Juan Merchan impeded media access into the courtroom for trial coverage after warning the 130 candidates of the jury that their selection could take up to a week, in order to eliminate potential supporters or opponents of the former US President which could lead to a risk of bias. He added that the trial could take a month and a half.
CFO, family friend, and involved executive Allen Weisselberg already pleaded guilty to 15 counts of tax fraud and as part of a plea deal, he is expected to testify against the firm.
Weisselberg confessed that he played the rules to receive undeclared benefits like a rent-free apartment in a luxury Manhattan neighborhood, along with cars for him and his wife and private school tuition for his grandchildren.
On account of the plea deal, he agreed to pay the amount of almost $2 million in fines and penalties and is required to complete a prison sentence for five months in return for testimony during the trial.
"This plea agreement directly implicates the Trump Organization in a wide range of criminal activity and requires Weisselberg to provide invaluable testimony in the upcoming trial against the corporation," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in August.
Two subsidiaries of the Trump family's real estate, golf, and hospitality business are targeted aspects by the lawsuit, and even though Donald Trump is not referred to by name, he and his three eldest children, Eric, Donald Jr., and Ivanka (who refused to testify against their father) are facing charges in an investigation open by New York's attorney general, Letitia James.
Attorney general James brought accusations against the family for the deliberate inflation and deflation of the properties' values in order to evade tax liabilities which in turn brought more favorable loan deals and insurance plans.
With that said, James' office is asking for $250 million in fines against Trump, with the addition of his family being barred from conducting business and purchasing real estate in New York for five years.
The Trump Organization slammed James' charges as "baseless" last month and the former President of the United States, a Republican, has denied any wrongdoing and dubbed James' investigation a politically motivated "witch hunt" given that James is a Democrat.
These are not the only lawsuits Trump is tackling, as he is also the main focus of the famous Justice Department probe after the FBI raided his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, into the handling of highly confidential and classified documents. Trump is the subject of another bunch of lawsuits for inciting and being involved in the January 6 attack on the US Capitol.
The committee investigating the Capitol riot issued a subpoena requiring Trump to submit paperwork by November 4 and give sworn testimony by mid-November. However, his lawyer David Warrington stated, without confirming that the subpoena was received, that the team would undergo revision and analysis of the subpoena and "respond as appropriate to this unprecedented action."
Complying with the subpoena would implicate testifying under oath, but if Trump refuses, the House of Representatives can hold him in contempt in a vote in order to bring him forward for prosecution.
