NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump’s lawyer told the Associated Press he was surprised by Trump’s stoic demeanor upon hearing the verdict that made him the first former U.S. president convicted of a crime. Todd Blanche was sitting to Trump’s left in the Manhattan courtroom as the verdict was read – the jury foreman repeated the word “guilty” 34 times.
“I was shocked at how he received the verdict,” Blanche said. “He just stood there and just took it. And I think it had a lot of solemnity that was appropriate for the moment, which made me very proud to be sitting next to him when, when it was happening,” Blanche said, adding that he thought Trump was still behaving well on Friday, the day after the verdict, even as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee criticized that the trial was unfair.
“He’s not happy about it, but there is no defendant in the history of our justice system who is happy with a conviction the next day. But I think he knows there’s still a lot of fighting ahead and a lot of opportunities to fix this and that’s what we’re going to try to do,” said Blanche, Trump’s lead lawyer on the New York case and its confidential federal crimes documents. case in Florida.
A jury of a dozen New Yorkers convicted Trump on all counts of falsifying business records, a crime punishable by prison, probation or a fine. As the foreman read the verdict, Trump shook his head slightly but did not vent his frustration until he left the courtroom. Trump promised to appeal.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump portrayed himself as the victim of a “rigged” trial, which he claimed was orchestrated by Democrats to thwart his presidential campaign. President Joe Biden later said it was “reckless,” “dangerous” and “irresponsible for someone to say this is rigged just because they didn’t like the verdict.”
Blanche dismissed Biden’s comments, saying it was natural for Trump to believe the law was being used unfairly against him. He cited the three other pending criminal cases against Trump: two cases in Georgia and Washington, where he is accused of trying to nullify the 2020 presidential elections, and in Florida, where he is accused of illegally possessing confidential records after leaving the White House.
“I believe in the justice system and I always will. And I don’t think this case should change anyone’s mind,” said Blanche, a former federal prosecutor who left his job at an elite law firm to represent Trump. “But if you were Donald J. Trump and you had four indictments… you don’t think you’d say you thought you were rigged, right?
“I think it’s easy to say, ‘Oh, this is dangerous. Keep showing up on your four indicted cases, sir. Stop saying it’s rigged. You know. ‘Nothing to see here. Totally normal. I don’t think it’s dangerous. I think this improves the system,” said Blanche.
The jury reached its verdict at around 4.20pm on Thursday, when it looked like deliberations would extend into a third day. Just minutes earlier, Judge Juan M. Merchan had returned to the courtroom to announce that, in lieu of a ruling, he would send jurors home for the evening at 4:30 p.m.
“I’m a defense lawyer and I’ve had a lot of trials and a lot of verdicts. And this was by far the most surprising at the moment,” said Blanche. “We were all ready to go home. I think it was pretty clear that they were going to keep working. any notes. The first note was quite complicated about the testimony and then asking for the indictment to be read to them. So this is a jury that is in for the long haul.
Blanche and Trump were having a pleasant conversation as they sat at the defense table, awaiting what they thought would be the last minutes of the court day.
“We were getting it right,” Blanche said. “Having a jury deliberating is stressful for everyone involved, but certainly for President Trump. And so we’re trying to get him to think well, that everything was happening as it should. And then the judge said we have a verdict.”
Asked about the way she handled the case, Blanche said the defense team did the best they could.
Regarding Trump’s decision not to testify, Blanche said the decision ultimately rested with the former president.
“He definitely wanted to testify,” Blanche said. But he said they knew prosecutors could question Trump in areas “that are very complicated” because they are the subject of legal challenges.
“There would have been a lot of sideshows if he had testified, which I think would have been a challenge for him,” Blanche said. “He was elected president and he’s running again, so obviously he connects with people and with voters, and I think he can certainly connect with a jury as well. But it wasn’t that simple to come to that decision.”
Among the things Trump could have been questioned about by prosecutors were a pending $455 million judgment against him in a fraud case brought by the New York attorney general and other judgments against him in cases brought by E. Jean Carroll , who accused Trump of sexual assault.
Blanche acknowledged there was a chance Trump would be sentenced to prison.
“On the one hand, it would be extraordinary to send a 77-year-old man to prison for a case like this. A first-time offender who was also president of the United States, I mean, I think it’s almost unheard of,” Blanche said.
On the other hand, Blanche said, “this is a highly publicized case” in which some may argue that Trump deserves a harsher punishment because he faces charges elsewhere. “So I think it will be a very controversial sentence where we will obviously argue vigorously for a non-incarceration sentence.”
Trump’s sentencing is scheduled for July 11.
