In closing arguments yesterday, Trump’s lawyer, Todd Branche, laid out 10 reasons why he believes the jury should have reasonable doubt.
Branche argued that even if there was a conspiracy to influence the election, falsifying business records is not a felony because it was not carried out by “illegal means.” Branche also asked the jury not to send Trump to prison, but Judge Juan Marchan called his comments “inappropriate” and asked the jury to disregard them.
The prosecution’s closing argument then lasted four hours and 40 minutes, with breaks in between, as attorney Joshua Steinglass argued that Trump falsified business records to conceal illegal campaign contributions to boost his 2016 presidential run.
Steinglass also sought to defend Michael Cohen’s testimony, arguing that a former Trump lawyer whose testimony the defense team challenged lied at Trump’s direction and that the former president’s lawyers then used those lies to try to discredit Cohen.
The trial ended at 8 p.m., with jurors spending roughly 11 hours in the courtroom.
President Trump left the court that day without comment, but in a post on his platform, Truth Social, earlier in the evening he denounced the proceedings as “boring” and a “filibuster.”
