After six weeks of juror selection, testimony and deliberation at Donald J. Trump’s hush money trial, the former president has now become the first U.S. president to be convicted of a felony in history.
On Thursday, a New York jury found him guilty of falsifying 34 business records to cover up a payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels before the 2016 elections.
Trump sat in the courtroom and barely reacted when the verdict was announced after nine hours of discussion on Wednesday and Thursday.
Once the trial ended, he spoke with the press outside the courtroom.
“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial,” he said. “The real verdict is going to be November 5 by the people. They know what happened here; everybody knows what happened here.”
New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan scheduled sentencing for July 11 at 10 a.m., just four days before the Republican Party holds its national convention in Milwaukee. There, Trump remains the almost certain pick as the presidential candidate for the upcoming Nov. 5 election.
Trump plans to appeal the decision, but he is likely to encounter uncomfortable situations as he goes back to the campaign trail. Back in 2016, he led chants of “lock her up” in relation to Hillary Clinton, who was never charged with a crime.
The maximum sentence Trump could receive is four years in prison. However, given that he is a first-time, white-collar offender, it’s unlikely that he will serve any prison time and may instead be placed on probation.
The verdict does not prevent Trump from running for office or becoming president. Additionally, he remains eligible to vote for himself in Florida as long as he avoids incarceration in New York.
