"I'm going to start with something I can say i think with confidence … which is just to thank you. To thank you for your jury service," defense attorney Todd Blanche told jurors to begin his closing argument.

"Each of you will decide ... whether President Trump is guilty or not guilty," he said.

All eyes in this courtroom are on Blanche. Every member of Trump's family is looking at him. The jurors are staring at him, many with pens in their hands ready to take notes.

"President Trump is innocent," Blanche said. "He did not commit any crimes, and the district attorney has not met their burden of proof. Period."

Defense counsel Todd Blanche says he has a 2.5-hour closing, "maybe a little longer."

Prosecutors say they estimate they have a 4 or 4.5-hour closing.

“Defense counsel must come up first, and the prosecutor must follow,” Judge Merchan said.

Merchan says he will ask the jury if they will work later than 4:30 p.m. to do all the closings in one day.

Judge Juan Merchan has taken his seat at the bench.

"Good morning, counsel. Good morning, Mr. Trump," Merchan said in his normal greeting to start the proceedings.

Donald Trump has entered the courtroom alongside his lawyers.

Don Trump, Jr., Eric Trump, Lara Trump, and Tiffany Trump followed behind the former president and took seats in the gallery immediately behind the defense counsel table.

Today is the first time Tiffany Trump attended the trial, and it's the largest showing of Trump family members on a single day of the trial.

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg, also in court today, is seated behind his prosecution team.

After he was found guilty on all counts in his historic criminal hush money case, former President Donald Trump angrily walked out of the courtroom and said, "The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5, by the people. And they know what happened here and everybody knows what happened here."

"This was a rigged, disgraceful trial," the former president told reporters. "I'm a very innocent man."

Trump blamed the Biden administration and Judge Juan Merchan.

"This was done by the Biden administration in order to wound or hurt an opponent, a political opponent, and I think it's a just a disgrace," he said, without evidence. "And we'll keep fighting, we'll fight 'til the end and we'll win."

"This was a rigged decision right from day one, with a conflicted judge who should have never been allowed to try this case -- never. And we will fight for our Constitution," he said.