The first seven people were selected to serve on the jury in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial on Tuesday after they made clear to both sides that they could render a fair and impartial verdict.
They were chosen on the second day of the trial after prosecutors and the defense team whittled down a group of 96 potential jurors. At one point, Judge Juan Merchan admonished Trump after observing him audibly mouthing something in the direction of one of the jurors, who had been asked about a social media posting she made the day Joe Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 election.
“I won’t tolerate that,” the judge said. “I will not have any jurors intimidated in this courtroom.” Trump’s lawyers ultimately eliminated that woman from the jury pool.
The seven chosen so far were sworn in on Tuesday and directed by Merchan to return to court on Monday.
Twelve people will be seated in total on the jury, plus each side will select alternates. The trial is expected to last as long as eight weeks.
Nigel Chiwaya contributed.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
