Thread by @KlasfeldReports

Good morning from New York.

Now that a full 12-person jury has been selected for Trump's criminal trial, it's time to round off the alternates. One down, five more to go. 🧵

Trump has set down at the defense table, between his lawyers Todd Blanche and Emil Bove.

Justice Merchan says all 22 jurors are here.

"We're also working on the temperature," he adds.

Justice Merchan on the courtroom's temperature, yesterday.

"I would rather be real cold than sweating, and really, those are your choices."

Fact check: True

First potential juror is gone after expressing fear of the discovery of her identity.

“I have really bad anxiety.”

Both sides agree to excuse her.

The next potential juror, originally from Spain, says she doesn't watch the news — and she says, rather emphatically, that she doesn't listen to podcasts.

"No. Never!"

She's also emphatic about her excellent health.

Asked in a standard question, whether she takes any medication, she says: "No, not even Tylenol."

Connecting the threads here.

https://x.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1781319194102866242

She affirms that she can decide the case on the evidence.

She says she has no strong opinions on Trump.

She hasn't read any of Trump's books — or his critics' books listed in the questionnaire.

"I will not hold anything against anybody."

Not a for-cause opening anywhere in these responses.

Next up: Another lawyer.

Originally from the Bronx, she's a Yankees fan and the daughter of a court officer. She knows a lot of NYPD officers, she says.

In response to the standard question about whether she's a crime victim, she discloses that she's been sexually assaulted and had her cell phone stolen.

She says she may have read Trump's "Art of the Deal" when she was younger.

The next potential juror is quickly excused after jumping straight to this question and saying she can't be impartial.

The next potential juror is an audio professional who was born and raised in New York, and a reader of the New York Times and Washington Post.

In response to the crime-victim question, he discloses that he's been mugged.

The next potential juror, an Upper East Side chef, enjoys running, watching TV and anime. His wife is a lawyer.

"Yes, I will be fair and impartial," he says.

He says of Trump: "I believe he is being treated fairly."

A potential alternate sounds emotional in response to a what he calls a "tough question" about his experiences with the justice system.

It was a "good experience" but a "tough one, but the system was helpful," getting choked up, then composing himself.

Citing his Scandinavian background, he says everyone is equal under the law.

A Jewish potential alternate inquires about the court's plans for Passover.

Judge: If we broke at 2 p.m., would that be good for you?

Yes, she responds.

Just a note:

Manhattan is a borough of 1.6 million residents, according to the most recent Census data.

Since yesterday, the juror info released by the court has been made broad enough to preserve anonymity. Specific info, like employer name, was once public but now isn't.

One of the potential alternates participated in a GOTV for Hillary Clinton and attended the Women's March.

On the question of whether he has opinions about prosecuting a former president in state court, he said: "All U.S. citizens should be subject to the law."

A potential alternate starts things off by saying:

"My father's lifelong friend is former Gov. Chris Christie."

But she adds that won't affect her ability to be impartial.

A potential alternate:

"I try to find a wife in my spare time."

We're moving on to the voir dire phase, with each side once again having 30 minutes to question the panel.

Up first for the DA: Susan Hoffinger

"You know this case has been in the news. There's been a fair amount of publicity about it," she says, with some understatement.

A prospective alternate asks whether "the burden of proof is subjective to each individual juror."

Hoffinger informs him that the burden of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt, for all jurors, and asks if he can follow that standard.

He replies that he can.

A potential alternate is excused after apparently tearing up.

"I thought I could do this," she says, emotionally.

She adds later: "This is so much more stressful than I thought this was going to be."

After a private talk with the judge, she's allowed to leave.

(I deleted and edited a prior tweet for clarity.)

The prosecutor polls every potential alternate on whether they could find Trump guilty if they prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.

She also has them affirm that if they do not meet that burden, they should find him not guilty.

One by one, they so affirm.

Trump's attorney Susan Necheles begins the next round of voir dire.

The theme of the defense voir dire throughout this process:

Tell us how you really feel about Trump.

This time, Necheles — taking a not-so-veiled dig at Michael Cohen — asks the jurors how they can evaluate a witness's testimony if they have committed perjury or changed their story.

Necheles asks whether allegations of infidelity would affect the potential alternates' ability to be impartial.

None of them say it would.

A potential alternate from Scandinavia says he's "neutral, lean positive" on Trump.

"I think he’s brought a lot of value to the economy," he says, adding Trump's "successful."

"I really like lower taxes in this country," he says. "I like lower regulation for businesses."

When it comes to religion and a woman's right to her body, he says, "That’s where me and the party don’t necessarily share" views."

Trump's lawyers find a potential alternates old social media posts, including one assailing Trump's "sociopathic incompetence."

Judge: Does that describe your feelings at that time?

"I wouldn’t say that’s far off-base," he says.

Another one of his old posts said of Trump:

"I do actually believe that he’s the devil."

He says, "At that time, yeah, I may have thought that."

He's excused for cause.