'Alarming': Expert says prosecutors are panicking about one juror in Trump's criminal case
The prosecution team may need to be wary of Juror No. 2.
Described as a married investment banker with a Master's degree is one thing. But the fact that he's read Trump’s bestselling book, "The Art of the Deal," and claims to track Trump's Truth Social posts — is another, according to one expert.
Elliot Williams, a former deputy assistant attorney general at the DOJ, flagged this particular juror as a potential concern for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg to prove his case to a jury of former President Donald Trump's Manhattan peers.
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During an appearance on CNN's "The Lead," host Jake Tapper asked Williams specifically about whether the juror's Truth Social consumption would make prosecutors "alarmed."
Williams answered, "I would be."
He then proceeded to compare reading Truth Social as being akin to an old refrain by Playboy Magazine fans who claimed they were enthralled by its stories tucked in between titillating pinups.
"Absolutely it would," he said. "That is like 'I just read it for the articles!'"
Tapper explained the reference. And Williams went further to detail why this juror could pose some trouble come verdict-reaching time.
"A prosecutor does not have to let this person on the jury," he said. "Now they have a finite number of these peremptory strikes and you gotta be very careful and judicious in how you mete them out.
"But even following Michael Cohen and reading 'The Art of the Deal' based on the limited information we have here, that social media account for somebody who's not Jake Tapper as a journalist if you're a prosecutor would be."
Thursday marked a pivotal benchmark for the historic first criminal trial of a former U.S. president.
A dozen jurors were seated, including one alternate. Their backgrounds range from English teacher, two attorneys, sales professional, software engineer, retired wealth manager, a speech therapist, and a physical therapist among others.
Trump has pleaded innocent and denies any wrongdoing.
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