Jury asks for testimony on Trump Tower meeting as it considers verdict

1. Jurors in Donald Trump's historic criminal trial began deliberations - the 12 New Yorkers must reach a unanimous verdict
2. The jury asked after lunch for testimony on a meeting with Trump, his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen and former tabloid publisher David Pecker
3. The court has heard from 22 witnesses over six weeks, including Stormy Daniels, whose alleged sexual encounter with Trump is at the centre of this case
4. Trump is accused of concealing a payment made to buy the former adult-film star’s silence shortly before the 2016 election
5. He has pleaded not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records, and denies any sexual encounter with her
6. Prosecutors accuse Trump of an "elaborate scheme", while the defence called the other side's star witness Michael Cohen the "MVP of liars"
7. It is the first time in history that a US president - former or current - has faced a criminal trial

Jury ends first day of deliberations with no verdict

Brandon Livesay

Reporting from New York

The day started with Justice Juan Merchan giving jurors instructions. He spent about an hour telling jurors how to interpret the law that's relevant to this case.

Then they were sent off to start deliberating in this historic trial.

After a few hours, we had some movement. A buzzing noise sounded, and everyone surged back into the courtroom.

It wasn't a verdict, it was jurors asking some questions. They wanted to see evidence from earlier in the trial

And with that, the day wrapped up. We'll be back at it on Thursday, with court scheduled to start at 09:30 local time (14.30 BST).

For a recap of where things stand in the trial, you can read this article.

Our reporters in court today were Kayla Epstein and Madeline Halpert. And this page was edited by Caitlin Wilson, Tiffany Wertheimer and myself.

Thanks for joining us.

The key players who did not testify

Brandon Livesay

Reporting from New York

Gett

An ex-porn star, a tabloid magazine publisher, the lawyer of a Playboy model and an ally-turned-enemy of a US President.

The witness list in Donald Trump’s hush-money trial reads like characters from a Hollywood blockbuster.

But key players in this saga did not testify. So who are they?

The biggest name is Donald Trump. Despite hints that Trump would testify, he did not.

A name mentioned throughout court, and whose dramatic text messages were read aloud to the jury, was Dylan Howard. The former editor-in-chief of the National Enquirer was described in witness testimony as helping orchestrate a “catch-and-kill” scheme to hide negative stories about Trump during the 2016 election. Howard is in Australia with medical issues, so he didn’t take the stand.

A significant chunk of the trial was spent talking about former Playboy model Karen McDougal. She claims to have had an affair with Trump (which he denies). McDougal was given $150,000 in hush money to hide her story. McDougal’s ex-lawyer testified, but she did not.

Michael Cohen testified that Allen Weisselberg, the former Chief Financial Officer of the Trump Organization, got the OK from Trump to classify hush-money reimbursements to Cohen as legal expenses.

Weisselberg is currently behind bars for perjury. The judge asked both legal teams if they had subpoenaed him to testify, but neither did.

Keith Schiller, Trump’s bodyguard, was also mentioned multiple times. Cohen claims he once called Schiller’s phone, who handed it to Trump. Cohen says they discussed the payment to Stormy Daniels on that call. But Schiller did not testify.

Protests outside the courthouse

Reuters

EPA

EPA

Protesters have been a steady presence throughout Donald Trump's hush-money trial.

They gather in a park outside the Manhattan court, sometimes split into two groups by police when there are a lot of them.

Today we also had a NYPD surveillance drone in the area.

Here are some images from the protesters today.

The deliberation room is a mystery - and so it should be

Gary O'Donoghue

Senior North America correspondent, reporting from New York

Sometimes 90% of journalism is just hanging around - and that is nowhere more true than when it comes to court cases.

Now that the jury is out, everyone is asking one question: when do you think the verdict will come?

It is, of course, both a highly pertinent and completely pointless question.

Juries can and should take whatever time they need to come to their conclusions - it's not a race, there are no prizes here for being the fastest or the slowest, and, most importantly, they could be dealing with someone's liberty and reputation.

Nevertheless, the prediction industry is in full flow: what did it mean when juror X scratched her ear; or when juror Y avoided Donald Trump's gaze. One fellow traveller even suggested to me that jurors could string it out a bit because that way they would get a couple of days of free lunches.

In truth, the jury room is, and ought to be, a bit of a mystery - as long as sausages come out at the end, you don't necessarily want to see how they're being made.

Day one of deliberations ends without a verdict

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

Todd Blanche asks if Trump can go back to his holding room across the hall while they work on finding the testimony, and Justice Merchan is OK with it.

The lawyers, however, have to stick around while they gather up all the testimony.

Trump exits the courtroom, and the first day of jury deliberations has ended without a verdict.

The jury will be back here tomorrow at 09:30 local time (14:30 BST) to continue their work.

Lawyers stay around despite jurors leaving

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

The jurors are done for the day, but the lawyers are not.

Justice Merchan has asked them to stick around until they locate the required pages of testimony.

Donald Trump is actively engaged here, sitting upright and asking his lawyer Emil Bove questions.

Jurors sent home for the day

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

"We'll get started tomorrow at 09:30," Justice Merchan says.

He asks the jury to think about what hours they can work, and says they wouldn't work beyond 18:00 local time.

Justice Merchan gives his standard speech, which is given a new weight now that they're in the thick of deliberations.

He reminds jurors not to read or speak about the case when they are outside of court.

How is Trump reacting?

Madeline Halpert

Reporting from court

Donald Trump seems engaged as he sits at the defence table.

He is looking toward the jurors as they answer Justice Merchan's questions, something he typically does not do.

Judge says it could take 30 minutes to read out the evidence

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

Justice Merchan tells the jury that they're still working on pulling the necessary testimony together, and it could take about half an hour to read it back to the jury.

Jury wants to hear about 30 pages of testimony

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

The judge asks the lawyers how many pages of testimony will need to be read back to answer the jury's first query.

They estimate about 30 pages.

And now the jury has returned to the courtroom. Everyone stands as they enter.

Jury is being gathered to hear instructions

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

Justice Merchan proposes bringing the jury back into the room, and also telling them that court staff are working on collecting the testimony they have requested.

The jury is being gathered now.

The judge will ask them if they want to hear all of his instructions again, or just a part.

Another jury note

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

We have a second jury note, asking to re-hear the judge's instructions.

Prior to this, Donald Trump was chatting with his lawyer Emil Bove at the defence table.

Todd Blanche, Trump's lawyer, has been standing up and occasionally pacing back and forth.

'Don't try to read the tea leaves from notes'

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

As we've said before, it is common for juries to have notes and questions as they deliberate.

A veteran of the Manhattan district attorney's office has a word of caution.

"Don't try to read the tea leaves from notes," says Karen Agnifilo, who left the office in 2021.

As much as people try to come up with theories about why the jurors make certain requests, she tells me, they can often be wrong.

Why jurors might want to see this specific evidence

Madeline Halpert

Reporting from court

As my colleague Kayla Epstein mentioned, it’s not uncommon for jurors to have questions, especially when they’ve listened to more than four weeks of testimony.

But some of the evidence the jurors just asked for is about a very specific meeting that goes to the heart of prosecution's case.

Jurors seem to want to know more about the alleged "catch-and-kill" scheme that Donald Trump, his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen, and former tabloid publisher David Pecker entered into in August 2015 as Trump ran for president.

Pecker testified that it was at that meeting in 2015 that he agreed to suppress negative stories about Trump - including alleged affairs - as he ran for president.

And Pecker’s testimony is key for prosecutors' to prove Trump’s intent in the business records falsification case.

"He provides the backdrop for how the whole 'catch-and-kill' scheme came to be, the players involved, and the timing as it related to Trump’s campaign," former Brooklyn prosecutor Julie Rendelman tells me.

Pecker, she says, knows Trump well and gives the jury an inside view as to the role Trump played in the decision making for the scheme.

David Pecker and his 'catch-and-kill' scheme to help Trump

Reuters / Jane Rosenberg

The jury has just asked the judge for more information about the evidence they've heard over the last few weeks, including part of the testimony given by former National Enquirer boss David Pecker about a conversation he had with Donald Trump.

Pecker is the former CEO of American Media Inc (AMI), and ran the National Enquirer tabloid magazine. In his testimony, he told the court how he and Michael Cohen pursued a practice known as "catch-and-kill" to support Trump's presidential run in 2016.

This involved buying the rights to stories that cast Trump in a bad light, and then never printing them, describing it as “an agreement between friends”.

Former Playboy model Karen McDougal, who didn’t testify in this case, says she was paid $150,000 by AMI for her story of an alleged affair with Trump - which he denies.

This payment, the court heard, was to keep her quiet about the purported tryst during the final weeks of the election campaign.

The jurors' questions are typical in any case

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

Now that the questions are in, there's some movement at the front of the court as both parties work with court staff to pull together the evidence for the jury.

It should be noted that jury questions are typical in any case, and happen often.

This might not be the last time we convene in this manner.

Jury wants to see evidence from David Pecker

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

The jury has requested some evidence:

1. The jury wants to see some of David Pecker's testimony regarding a conversation with Donald Trump
2. Pecker's testimony regarding Karen McDougal's story
3. Pecker’s testimony regarding his meeting in Trump Tower with Michael Cohen and Donald Trump
4. Cohen’s testimony regarding that same meeting

A quick refresher, David Pecker was the publisher the National Enquirer tabloid, and he testified about a "catch-and-kill" scheme to buy and bury stories that might harm Trump's political campaign.

The jury has a question

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

"We received a note," the judge says - a juror has a question.

The note contains four requests.

Why everyone is returning is unclear

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

We have some movement in the courtroom, though it's not clear yet for what purpose.

A few minutes ago, we heard a buzzer go off, and reporters were brought back inside.

Donald Trump's team and the prosecution have re-entered the room just now, as well as Justice Juan Merchan.

We'll find out more soon.

BreakingTrump returns to courtroom

Kayla Epstein

Reporting from court

Donald Trump has returned to the courtroom along with his team of lawyers and aides.