Attorney Spilbor Tells Newsmax: Jury Instructions in Merchan Case Deemed Unconstitutional

Attorney and Trump surrogate Jonna Spilbor criticized Manhattan Judge Juan Merchan for his jury instructions in the trial against former President Donald Trump on Newsmax Thursday. Spilbor said that Merchan’s instructions seemed to undermine the need for a unanimous verdict and even likened the judge to lining his bird cage with the U.S. Constitution.

Spilbor explained that Merchan’s instructions indicated that the jury did not need to unanimously agree on the specific underlying crime that Trump may have committed to warrant the 34 charges against him. Instead, Merchan presented three potential “unlawful means” that the jurors could apply to Trump’s charges, such as falsifying business records.

Spilbor emphasized that none of the crimes presented by Merchan were what Trump was actually charged with and that the judge seemed to create his own rules regarding the burden of proof. She also pointed out that the jury was presented with federal offenses that the prosecutor, Alvin Bragg, did not have authority to file.

The fact that these issues are coming to light during the trial is concerning to Spilbor, who believes it may confuse the jury. She anticipates possible guilty verdicts, but she believes that the appellate division would likely overturn them due to these errors in jury instructions.

Meanwhile, the jury requested portions of testimony from Michael Cohen and David Pecker to be read back to them, possibly indicating skepticism towards Cohen’s credibility. Spilbor acknowledged that the jury has the option to discount testimonies from witnesses they do not believe, such as Cohen.

Spilbor expressed her desire for a definitive end to the trial, as she believes that Trump should be able to resume his political activities regardless of the verdict. She hopes to avoid a hung jury and a continuation of the trial into the next week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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