A trial date has been set in Donald Trump's hush money case, which centers on the allegation that he paid money to two women – including an adult film star – after they said he had affairs with them.
Jury selection will begin on Monday, March 25, the judge ruled today, denying requests for a delay from Trump cardLawyers.
The case centers on years-old accusations that Trump sought to bury stories of extramarital affairs that surfaced during his 2016 presidential campaign.
The decision means that Trump will become the first former US president to be tried on a criminal charge.
Prosecutors allege he paid money to two women – porn stars Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal — as well as the Trump Tower doorman, who claimed to have a story about Trump fathering a child out of wedlock. Trump denies having any sexual encounters.
Stormy Daniels, seen here in January, received $130,000 from Trump's lawyer. Pic: AP/DeeCee Carter/MediaPunch/IPX
Michael Cohen, Trump's lawyer at the time, paid Ms. Daniels $130,000, and arranged for the publisher of the National Enquirer to pay Ms. McDougal $150,000 in a practice known as “catch and kill” to bury the story.
Trump's company then paid Cohen $420,000 and described the payments as legal expenses, according to prosecutors. Trump's legal team says no crime was committed.
The former president was in the New York courthouse for the hearing and arrived shortly before 9 a.m. local time.
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Donald Trump speaks with a lawyer during his court appearance today. Photo: Reuters
It was Trump's first visit to the building since he was there in April 2023, when the historic indictment made him the first former president charged with a crime.
This is the first of four criminal trials against Trump that will begin amid his attempt to return to the White House. He also faces Multiple civil lawsuits.
Trump's lawyers complained that the trial would continue while he tries to secure his place as the Republican Party's nominee for the US general elections next November, claiming that this could amount to “election interference.”
By leaving the trial date unchanged, Judge Juan Manuel Mercia took advantage Delay in another Trump trial.
His charge of conspiring to overturn the results of the 2020 election is effectively on hold due to a Supreme Court appeal from the former president.
Trump's other two criminal charges are illegally storing classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida and criminal conspiracy to overturn his narrow 2020 election defeat in Georgia.
