Trump hush-money trial updates: New York jury finds ex-president guilty

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You can read all about how a New York jury found Donald Trump guilty in his hush-money trial here.

For more on all of the former Republican president’s legal woes, watch our video explainer here.

We are going to bring our live coverage to an end soon. Here’s a summary of today’s main events:

• A New York jury has found Donald Trump guilty in a hush-money case, making him the first former US president to be convicted of a crime.
• Trump has been convicted on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to a hush-money payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
• The judge overseeing the case, Juan Merchan, is expected to announce his sentencing decision on July 11.
• Trump faces a maximum sentence of four years for each felony, but experts say it is unlikely he will get jail time; instead, he could receive probation or community service.

After the verdict was read, a few Trump supporters in Miami arrived at the iconic Cuban restaurant Versailles, where Trump made a stop a year ago after pleading not guilty in the classified documents case in Florida.

“This is so wrong. All of us Cubans stand with Donald Trump. This is so wrong,” Michael Perez Ruiz, 47, told the Associated Press news agency.

Perez said he still plans to support him in November. “I would vote for him 20 times,” he said.

At Manuel’s Tavern in Atlanta, Georgia – a popular hangout for Democratic voters near former President Jimmy Carter’s presidential library – a small gathering of customers huddled at the bar.

As a news anchor relayed the verdicts, they cheered. One bartender rang the “tip bell”.

Outside the bar, Joan Marks, a 58-year-old Democrat, hailed the verdict but offered a prediction: “Get ready for a felonious president.”

We have more from Al Jazeera’s John Hendren, who is reporting from outside the court in New York City, on what happens next in the legal process.

“Trump is going to have to do an interview with the probation department, like every other person convicted of a crime. His lawyers will undoubtedly appeal this case,” Hendren said.

“It is unlikely that, whatever the sentence is on July 11, he will in any way be confined before the election and all of those appeals.

“But it’s important to note he could face years in prison, he could face home confinement, he could just face probation – having never been convicted of a major crime before. All of those things could potentially at some point interfere with his ability to campaign.”

JD Vance has slammed the verdict, invoking the conspiracy theory that liberal billionaire George Soros was funding prosecutors to go after the former president.

“Dems invented a felony to ‘get Trump,’ with the help of a Soros funded prosecutor and a Biden donor Judge, who rigged the entire case to get this outcome,” Vance said in a social media post. “This isn’t justice, it’s election interference.”

The Ohio senator is rumoured to be among the candidates Trump is considering for the vice president spot on the 2024 Republican ticket.

This decision is a disgrace to the rule of law and our Constitution.

Dems invented a felony to "get Trump," with the help of a Soros funded prosecutor and a Biden donor Judge, who rigged the entire case to get this outcome.

This isn't justice, it's election interference.

— J.D. Vance (@JDVance1) May 30, 2024

Trump will be sentenced on July 11 – that’s four days before the Republican National Convention, where he is expecting to accept his party’s nomination for the presidency as a convicted, sentenced felon.

Nothing like that has ever happened before, but it’s not clear that Trump is going to pay a political penalty for this.

So far, the reaction from Republicans in Congress and elsewhere has largely been – almost universally – supportive.

Trump said on his Truth social media platform that he will deliver more in-depth remarks on the verdict tomorrow in a news conference at Trump Tower in New York.

Trump also posted a campaign video on his Truth Social page, saying, “This is the final battle.”

One exchange since the verdict was delivered this evening has highlighted the perilous path faced by Republicans who refuse to say Trump’s conviction was politically motivated.

In a post on X, Maryland’s Republican Governor Larry Hogan, who is running for the US Senate, wrote: “Regardless of the result, I urge all Americans to respect the verdict and the legal process.”

He was quickly rebuked by Trump’s campaign manager, Chris LaCivita.

“You just ended your campaign,” LaCivita said.

You just ended your campaign https://t.co/LJDuQ4oj0A

— Chris LaCivita (@LaCivitaC) May 30, 2024

Mike Johnson, the staunchly conservative speaker of the US House of Representatives, has become the latest elected official to weigh in on the verdict.

Johnson repeated a line that has become common among members of the Republican Party, which has largely coalesced around Trump.

“Democrats cheered as they convicted the leader of the opposing party on ridiculous charges, predicated on the testimony of a disbarred, convicted felon,” he posted on X.

“This was a purely political exercise, not a legal one. The weaponisation of our justice system has been a hallmark of the Biden Administration, and the decision today is further evidence that Democrats will stop at nothing to silence dissent and crush their political opponents.”

My statement on President Trump trial verdict:

Today is a shameful day in American history. Democrats cheered as they convicted the leader of the opposing party on ridiculous charges, predicated on the testimony of a disbarred, convicted felon. This was a purely political…

— Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) May 30, 2024

It’s 7pm local time in New York (23:00 GMT), about two hours after a jury found Trump guilty in his hush money trial. Here’s what you need to know.

• The jury finds Trump guilty on all 34 felony charges of falsifying business records related to a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels – making him the first former president convicted of a crime in US history.
• Trump slams the trial as “rigged” and “a disgrace” and says he is the victim of an effort to undermine his 2024 re-election bid.
• Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, says the jury reached its verdict “in the same manner as every other case”.
• Trump’s sentencing hearing has been scheduled for July 11.

The district attorney says Trump’s trial was not treated differently than any other prosecuted by his office.

“[The jurors’] deliberations led them to a unanimous conclusion beyond the reasonable doubt that the defendant Donald J Trump is guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, to conceal a scheme to corrupt the 2016 election,” he said.

“While this defendant may be unlike any other in American history, we arrived at this trial and ultimately today at this verdict in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors: By following the facts and the law and doing so without fear or favour.”

He added: “The only voice that matters is the voice of the jury, and the jury has spoken.”

After being in the centre of a media firestorm for weeks, Judge Merchan has instructed the 12 jurors – whose identities have been shielded throughout the trial – that they are now permitted to freely discuss the verdict.

He praised the jurors for giving the case the attention “it deserved” and thanked them for their work.

In a brief statement, Ian Sams, the spokesman for the White House counsel’s office, said: “We respect the rule of law and have no additional comment.”

The White House has been careful when addressing the trial, citing concerns over running afoul of laws that prohibit the president and members of his administration from campaigning in an official capacity.

The former president has shared a brief post on his Truth Social platform.

He wrote: “VICTORY ON NOVEMBER 5TH. SAVE AMERICA!!!”