MSNBC legal analyst Danny Cevallos predicted that the New York trial against former President Donald Trump may be cut short due to juror attrition.
Two jurors were lost before the trial began due to concerns about impartiality after being questioned by family.
“So here’s the thing. I think juror attrition could be a real problem in this case,” Cevallos said. “I mean, just do the math. Last week, we lost two jurors before the trial even began.”
Cevallos noted this is unusual and pressure from outside opinions can influence jurors.
If the current rate of juror loss continues, it could lead to a mistrial, which would benefit the defense.
“When you think about it, you do lose jurors during a trial. I’ve lost them. They fell asleep. They don’t follow the judge’s orders. But you don’t normally lose a juror after the moment they’re selected and between that and the time that the trial actually begins because, ordinarily, nothing happens during that time,” Cevallos said.
Trump has questioned whether he can get a fair trial in Manhattan and targeted the judge’s daughter.
His allies have criticized DA Bragg for charging Trump with felonies while downgrading charges against others.
“But in this case, you have an example where a juror goes home, they start really thinking about their duty and what this is going to entail, and they come back and say, ‘you know what, I don’t want to do this anymore.’ By the way, that’s also something that happens from time to time,” Cevallos added.
“I’ve had it in organized crime cases. You have jurors who come up to the judge and say, ‘I’ll do anything. Please, I do not want to be on this jury. I’m afraid.’ That’s not obviously the same situation here, but you do have jurors who are going to have second thoughts.”
Trump argued on Truth Social that his supporters should be allowed the same right to protest as other political demonstrations receive.
Cevallos commented that six alternate jurors may not be enough to cover the trial if attrition continues at the current pace.
“And the question becomes, will six alternates be enough to cover this trial?” Cevallos asked. “I hope so. But if what we’ve seen so far, if that’s the rate of loss of jurors, two before we even start the trial, that could be a real problem and that could lead to a mistrial, which in, I think, the defense’s view, is a win.”
“America Loving Protesters should be allowed to protest at the front steps of Courthouses, all over the Country, just like it is allowed for those who are destroying our Country on the Radical Left, a two-tiered system of justice,” Trump wrote.
“Why are Palestinian protesters, and even rioters, allowed to roam the Cities, scream, shout, sit, block traffic, enter buildings, not get permits, and basically do whatever they want including threatening Supreme Court Justices right in front of their homes, and yet people who truly LOVE our Country, and want to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, are not allowed to ‘Peacefully Protest,’ and are rudely and systematically shut down and ushered off to far away ‘holding areas,’ essentially denying them their Constitutional Rights.”
