Trump trial: 1st week of testimony ends with testimony from Michael Cohen's former banker

Banker Gary Farro testified in Donald Trump's hush money trial in New York.

Former President Donald Trump is on trial in New York City, where he is facing felony charges related to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. It marks the first time in history that a former U.S. president has been tried on criminal charges.

Trump last April pleaded not guilty to a 34-count indictment charging him with falsifying business records to hide the reimbursement of a hush money payment his then-attorney Michael Cohen made to Daniels in order to boost his electoral prospects in the 2016 presidential election.


What to know about the hush money case

READ MORE: Here's what you need to know about the historic case.


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Jury selection to resume

Jury selection resumes today in former President Trump's criminal hush money case when a new batch of 96 prospective jurors tackles the seven-page questionnaire that begins the whittling-down process.

Seven jurors were seated and sworn in on Tuesday. They were told to be prepared to return to court as soon as Monday when opening statements could begin.

Among the seated jurors is a school teacher, an oncology nurse and a grandfather born in Puerto Rico who said he found Trump "fascinating and mysterious."

The court needs five additional jurors and six alternates.

On Tuesday, each side used six of its 10 peremptory strikes, which eliminate a prospective juror from the pool for almost any reason. The judge may give each side additional peremptory challenges for seating alternate jurors.


Prosecutors want to question Trump about civil cases

If former President Trump opts to testify in the trial, prosecutors want to question him about all the times he has been held liable in civil court, according to a new court filing in the case.

Prosecutors have asked Judge Juan Merchan to hold a hearing, known as a Sandoval hearing, to determine the scope of what they can ask Trump on cross-examination.

"We are prepared to do a Sandoval hearing now, later or whenever the court desires," Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass said on Monday.

The judge has not set a date for the hearing but suggested it could be Friday.

In their filing, prosecutors outlined the civil cases they'd like to bring up during the criminal trial, including the $464 million judgment in Trump's civil fraud case, the defamation and battery cases brought by E. Jean Carroll and a lawsuit Trump filed against Hillary Clinton claiming she conspired to rig the 2016 election, for which Trump and his lawyers faced legal sanctions after the case was thrown out as frivolous.

Prosecutors also want to question Trump about a criminal case his company lost in 2022, when the Trump Organization was convicted of tax evasion by providing non-cash compensation to top executives.

They also want to bring up a civil case the New York attorney general won against the Trump Foundation for misusing charitable donations.


Trump criticizes jury selection process

On his day off from his New York criminal trial, Donald Trump is complaining about the jury selection process on his social media platform.

The former president is claiming that in the process of picking the jury, he doesn't have enough strikes -- i.e., allowances to remove prospective jurors that his legal team objects to.

"I thought STRIKES were supposed to be 'unlimited' when we were picking our jury?" Trump wrote on his social media platform. "I was then told we only had 10, not nearly enough when we were purposely given the 2nd Worst Venue in the Country."

Trump does get unlimited strikes to remove a juror for cause, which means for a specified reason -- but both the defense and prosecutors have a limited number of peremptory challenges, which allow for the removal of a juror for any reason.

-Soo Rin Kim, Lalee Ibssa and Peter Charalambous


Court is in recess today

Court is not in session today in former President Trump's criminal hush money trial, as the trial schedule has a full-day recess every Wednesday.

Yesterday saw the first seven jurors in the case seated. Eleven more jurors -- six of them alternates -- remain to be chosen.

The selection of the first jurors was one of the four big takeaways from Day 2 of the trial Tuesday.


Pecker describes 'great relationship' with Trump

Former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker, back on the witness stand, pointed at Donald Trump and flashed a smile when he was asked to identify the defendant. Trump turned his chin up and grinned at his longtime friend.

"I met Mr. Trump at Mar-a-Lago," Pecker said. "I've had a great relationship with Mr. Trump over the years."

That relationship started in 1989 when Pecker wanted to start a magazine called Trump Style.

"He was very helpful in introducing me to other executives in New York. He would always advise me of parties or events that I would go to," Pecker said, adding that Trump was among the first to congratulate him upon acquiring the National Enquirer.

Pecker described how Trump became a "major celebrity" after launching The Apprentice and later Celebrity Apprentice, and how the National Enquirer was there to juice Trump's profile.

"He was always kind enough to send me the content showing the ratings and I was able to publish that," Pecker said of their "great mutual beneficially relationship.

Pecker said he considered Trump a friend from 2015 to 2017, calling him by the familiar "Donald," as he pursued the White House for the first time.

"After he announced his run for the presidency I saw Mr. Trump more frequently, maybe once a month," Pecker said. The two spoke "maybe once every couple of weeks."

Pecker recalled meeting Trump in his office when his assistant brought a batch of invoices and checks to sign.

"As I recollect the entire package was stapled together," Pecker said.

"So you observed him reviewing an invoice and signing a check?" prosecutor Josh Steinglass asked. "That's correct," Pecker responded.

"I would describe him as very knowledgeable, very detail-oriented, almost as a micromanager," Pecker said.

When Steinglass asked how Trump was with money, Pecker responded, "He was very cautious and very frugal."