Summary

  • Jury selection in Donald Trump's first criminal trial will begin on 25 March, the judge in his New York hush money case says

  • Justice Juan Merchan made the announcement after dismissing Trump's motion to have the case dismissed

  • This case relates to allegations of hush money paid to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016

  • Daniels says she was paid $130,000 (£103,000) in 2016 to stay quiet after having sex with Trump, who denies they ever had an affair

  • The former president is accused of falsifying his business records by saying the payment was for legal fees

  • He's facing 34 counts of fraud under campaign finance laws, and has pleaded not guilty to all of them

Live Reporting

Edited by Brandon Livesay

  1. Welcome

    Brandon Livesay
    Reporting from New York

    Hello and welcome to our live coverage of Donald Trump’s New York court case, where he is expected to attend a hearing over “hush money” paid to porn actress Stormy Daniels in 2016.

    Daniels claims she and Trump had sex, and that she accepted $130,000 (£103,500) from his former lawyer Michael Cohen before the 2016 election - in exchange for her silence about the encounter.

    Since the allegations surfaced in 2018, the former president has denied any sexual involvement with Daniels.

    In Thursday’s hearing, the judge overseeing the matter could indicate if the trial will start on 25 March.

    And more generally, the judge will rule on some motions filed by Trump’s legal team.Stick with us.