• Trump is not charged with any wrongdoing.
• He is not accused of any crimes in connection with those firms’ activities.
• He is accused of participating in an alleged tax fraud scheme.

A jury of four women and eight men in Manhattan Supreme Court will begin hearing opening statements on Monday regarding the alleged crimes committed by two of the firms owned by the former president of the United States, Donald Trump.

Six alternates and at least five people of color were chosen as jurors last week for the projected six-week trial. They underwent a thorough investigation into their personal and professional histories, including if they harbored animosity toward Trump, who is not charged with any wrongdoing in the case.

To choose the remaining two alternate jurors on Friday, attorneys had to reach a last-minute swap deal, largely because so many of the people who had been screened had been disqualified because they firmly disagree with Trump. One candidate who had been rejected by one side was reinstated by both the government and defense legal teams.

The Trump Corporation and the Trump Payroll Corporation are accused of participating in an alleged tax fraud scheme in the first criminal charges ever brought against organizations connected to the former president.

From 2005 to the middle of 2021, the corporations allegedly made hundreds of thousands of dollars in unreported, off-the-books payments to Allen Weisselberg, Trump’s longtime top financial aide.

In an accord with prosecutors, Weisselberg, who was also indicted in the case, pled guilty to 15 criminal offences in August. His testimony is anticipated to result in a sentence of around 100 days in jail, which is much less than anticipated.

The panel of potential jurors included Manhattanites, residents of the county where the Trump enterprises are situated, who came from all walks of life and had a range of hobbies and educational backgrounds.

One of the chosen jurors is a Black woman who was born and raised in New York. She claimed to be employed by Harlem Hospital, a part of New York City’s public hospital system, as the administrator of a dialysis unit.

She disclosed to the counsel during pre-trial screening that she had one daughter and one grandchild but has never been married. Additionally, she admitted to occasionally watching NY1, the city’s 24-hour cable news program.

A large number of the prospective jurors frequently consider the media outlet as a reliable source of information. One, who was chosen to hear the case, stated that she retired in 2019 from Bellevue Medical, another facility in the city’s public hospital system, after more than 25 years of service. She currently looks after a pal.

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