What’s next for Donald Trump after he was convicted of hush money?

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s Convicted of 34 felonies While this marks the end of the former president’s historic hush money trial, the fight over the case is far from over.

Now comes the verdict, and possible prison time, in the lengthy appeals process. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidates are Three more criminal cases And a campaign that could return him to the White House.

After more than nine hours of deliberation over two days, a Manhattan jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records in the case. due to the payment of hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential campaign.

An angrily charged Trump denounced the trial as a “disgrace” and told reporters he was an “innocent man.”

Key takeaways from the jury’s decision include:

Go to jail?

The big question now is whether Trump will go to prison. The answer is uncertain. Judge Juan M. Marchand is scheduled to hand down his sentence on July 11, just days before the Republicans are due to rule. formally established Nominate President Trump.

The charge of falsifying business records is a Class E felony in New York, the state’s lowest felony. It carries a maximum sentence of four years in prison, but the punishment is ultimately up to a judge, and there is no guarantee that Trump will receive a prison sentence. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to comment on whether prosecutors would seek prison time.

It’s unclear how much the judge will consider the political and logistical complexities of jailing a former president who is trying to retake the White House. Other penalties could include fines or probation. It’s also possible the judge could allow Trump to avoid prison until he has exhausted his appeals.

Trump faces even longer prison terms in three other cases. The case is stuck on appeal. With other legal battles ongoing, it is unclear whether any of them will go to trial before the November election.

What it means for the election

The conviction will not prevent Trump from continuing his campaign or serving as president. He can still vote Unless he ends up in a New York state prison, he plans to work for himself in his home state of Florida.

President Trump’s daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, who serves as co-chair of the Republican National Committee, said in an interview with Fox News Channel on Thursday that if President Trump is convicted and sentenced to house arrest, he would likely hold virtual rallies and campaign events.

It is unclear whether a once-unthinkable conviction of Trump in a deeply divided America will have any impact on the election.

Leading strategists in both parties believe Trump, a Republican, remains well-positioned to defeat President Joe Biden, even though he now faces possible prison time and has three criminal cases outstanding.

There were immediate signs that, at least in the short term, the guilty verdict was helping to unify fragmented factions within the Republican Party, as GOP officials across the political spectrum came out in support of the embattled presidential nominee and his campaign reported a major fundraising boost within hours of the verdict.

There have been some polls about the likelihood of a conviction, but such hypothetical scenarios are very difficult to predict. ABC News/Ipsos Poll The survey found that only 4% said they would withdraw their support if Trump was convicted of a felony, while 16% said they would reconsider.

Avenues of appeal

Trump can then challenge his conviction in the New York Court of Appeals and potentially the state Supreme Court. His legal team is already preparing an appeal, contesting the charges and sentence in court.

The defense accused the judge of being biased because his daughter heads a law firm whose clients include Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats. The defense’s request was rejected He offered to recuse himself from the case, saying he was confident in his “ability to be fair and impartial.”

On appeal, Trump’s lawyers may argue that the judge’s ruling limited testimony from an expert witness for the defense, who wanted to call Federal Election Commission attorney Bradley Smith to argue against prosecutors’ arguments that the hush money payments violated campaign finance laws.

But the defense ultimately didn’t let him testify after the judge ruled that while he could provide general background on the FEC, he could not interpret how federal campaign finance laws apply to the facts of Trump’s case or opine whether Trump’s alleged conduct violated those laws. Expert testimony on legal issues is often guardrailed because it is the judge who instructs jurors on applicable law, not experts hired by either side.

The defense may argue that jurors were improperly allowed to hear sometimes graphic testimony. From Daniels Daniels testified about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, which Trump denies. The defense unsuccessfully sought a mistrial over salacious details extracted by prosecutors from Daniels. Defense attorney Todd Blanche argued that Daniels’ account of a power imbalance with the older, taller Trump was a “rape dog whistle,” was irrelevant to the charges and was “irrefutable testimony.”

Reliability-focused defense

The verdict indicates that jurors were not convinced by Trump’s defense, which hinged on attacking the credibility of several key witnesses, particularly Trump lawyer-turned-adversary Michael Cohen. Directly implicated Trump in the hush-money scheme.

As in many criminal cases, Trump’s defense team has attempted to make a number of arguments while questioning prosecution witnesses. Robert CostelloThe lawyer was seeking to defend Cohen after he became the target of a federal investigation for his work for President Trump.

The move may have backfired because it paved the way for prosecutors to question Costello about the pressure campaign aimed at keeping Cohen loyal to Trump after the FBI raided his assets in April 2018.

Costello emboldened the defense by testifying that Cohen denied knowing anything about Trump’s $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels.

But prosecutors portrayed Costello as a “double agent” whose true purpose was to stop Cohen from going against Trump, and he repeatedly alluded to his close relationship with Trump ally Rudy Giuliani in emails to Cohen. In one, Costello told Cohen, “Sleep well tonight. You have friends in high places,” and added, “There have been some very favorable comments about you from the White House.”

Costello, a belligerent man, would talk when challenged and roll his eyes, sometimes irritating the judge in front of the jury. At one point, after dismissing the jurors from the room, the judge became angry, saying Costello was glaring at him. Marchan then briefly removed reporters from the courtroom and scolded Costello, warning him that he would be removed from the courtroom if he continued to use abusive language.

Building a foundation for losses

While feigning confidence, Trump and his campaign also sought to undermine the case in the weeks leading up to a possible conviction. Trump repeatedly called the entire system “rigged” — a term he also used to falsely describe the 2020 election he lost to Biden.

“Not even Mother Teresa could defeat these accusations,” Trump said Wednesday, referring to the Catholic nun and saint.

Trump has tried to portray the case as nothing more than a politically motivated witch hunt waged by Bragg, a Democrat, slamming the judge and complaining about members of the prosecution team.

He has also complained about a gag order that prevents him from speaking about some of the people involved in the case. Instead of testifying and being cross-examined in the case, Trump is focusing on the court of public opinion and the voters who will ultimately decide his fate.

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Richer reported from Washington. Associated Press reporters Steve Peoples and Jennifer Peltz contributed from New York.