Judge Merchan told the jury that they should not speculate about the sentence or punishment in the case.

"It will be my responsibility to impose an appropriate sentence," Merchan said.

The judge also had to advise the jury about this yesterday after defense lawyer Todd Blanche argued that the jury "cannot send somebody to prison" based on Michael Cohen's testimony.

The jury appears to be laser focused on Merchan during the charge. Half of the jurors appear to be taking notes.

"It is not my responsibility to judge the evidence here. It is yours," Judge Merchan told the jurors as he began his instructions for their deliberations.

"You are the judges of the facts, and you are responsible for deciding whether the defendant is guilty or not guilty."

The judge instructed jurors on avoiding "stereotypes" or "implicit biases" in their deliberations.

"As a juror you are asked to make a very important decision about another member of the community," he said.

Judge Juan Merchan took his seat on the bench, and Trump flashed a closed mouth smile when the judge said good morning in his usual fashion.

Before bringing the jury back into the courtroom, Merchan asked the parties to confirm the proposed verdict form.

Prosecutor Josh Steinglass flagged a minor typo, but both sides appeared to be in agreement about the form, which will the jury will fill out once they render a verdict.

After the jury was brought into the courtroom, Merchan told them the reading of the jury charge will take approximately an hour.

Former President Trump did not speak with reporters as he entered the courtroom this morning, but instead made a series of posts on social media.

Referring to prosecutors' five-hour closing statement yesterday, Trump wrote, "THE D.A.’s OFFICE WAS ALLOWED TO GO ON WITH 5 HOURS OF BULL---- YESTERDAY."

The defense's closing argument took three hours.

Prosecutor Josh Steinglass told jurors that allegations from women in October 2016 posed a significant risk to Trump's campaign.

"This race could not have been closer," Steinglass said, arguing that Trump knew the allegations were "capable of costing him the whole election, and he knew it."

Steinglass replayed a video of an October 2016 Trump rally in Greensboro, North Carolina to demonstrate Trump's concern.

"It caused pandemonium in the Trump campaign," Steinglass said about the "Access Hollywood" tape.

Trump, at the defense table, looked at the evidence before shifting back in his chair. After shaking his head in disagreement, he whispered back and forth with his attorney Emil Bove.

Steinglass argued that Trump was particularly concerned about the Daniels allegations because they could undermine his response to the "Access Hollywood" tape.

"Stormy Daniels was a walking, talking reminder that the defendant was not only words," Steinglass said. "She would have totally undermined his strategy for spinning the 'Access Hollywood' tape."

Hitting back at the defense's suggestion that the "Access Hollywood" tape "wasn't a big deal to the defendant -- it was just another blip," Steinglass said, "You really can't understand this case without appreciating the climate in the wake of the 'Access Hollywood' tape ... it caused pandemonium in the Trump campaign."