Trump found guilty on 34 counts in New York criminal case

Former President Donald Trump during his hush money trial in New York where he was found guilt by the jury on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments.. Photo Credit: AP

On Thursday May 30, 2024, former President Donald Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts in a New York criminal case that has taken center stage in American politics. The Manhattan District Attorney, Alvin Bragg, had brought several charges against Trump relating to falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments to adult-film star Stormy Daniels in the first degree. The former president is facing other charges, such as overvaluing his New York penthouse and other real estate properties to get higher loans and manipulating his business records to pay lower than required taxes in a separate case.

After two days of deliberation by the jury, Mr. Trump was found guilty on all charges, putting his presidential campaign in jeopardy.
Mr. . Trump is the first former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime. 
Each count carries a four-year maximum sentence.
Mr. Trump will be sentenced on July 11, four days before the Republican National Convention (RNC), and he has said he will fight on. The RNC will take place from July 15 to 18 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
In a statement, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the NYPD will respond to small and large protests and noted that the “criminal justice process” must be respected.”
“Today, a jury of 12 New Yorkers registered their verdict. Our criminal justice process must be respected,” Adams said in a press release after the verdict. 

“As we await the next steps, New Yorkers should rest assured that the NYPD stands ready to respond to any and all circumstances, including large-scale protests. While peaceful protests and assembly will always be protected, we will not be a city of any form of lawlessness.”
The former president has vowed to “fight to the end,” and stressed that: it “is far from over,” moments after the guilty verdict was reached.
Despite his conviction, Mr. Trump is in high spirits as he plans to continue fundraising for his 2024 presidential campaign.
A campaign spokesperson told Fox News Digital that the former president departed his home in New York to attend a fundraiser on Thursday evening. 
“We are already back to the mission,” the spokesperson said. “President Trump won’t let this sham stop the movement of this campaign to save the nation.”

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg commended the guilty verdict, saying “The jury has spoken” in a “I did my job” and “we did our job” speech Thursday evening. 
“I did my job. Our job is to follow the facts and the law without fear or favor. And that’s exactly what we did here. And what I feel is gratitude to work alongside phenomenal public servants who do that each and every day in matters that you all write about. … I did my job. We did our job. Many voices are out there. The only voice that matters is the voice of the jury. And the jury has spoken,” Bragg said. 
Trump faces a maximum of 136 years in prison. 

Reactions to Trump’s Conviction

Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump

While Ivanka Trump said, “I love you, dad,” in a post shortly after Mr. Trump’s conviction, Eric Trump described May 30 as the day his father won the 2024 U.S. presidential elections. 
“May 30th, 2024, might be remembered as the day Donald J. Trump won the 2024 presidential election,” Eric Trump wrote.

Marjorie Taylor Greene

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican from Georgia, said Americans are outraged and “offended” by Thursday’s verdict against Trump. 
‘American people are offended,’ Marjorie Taylor Greene said. 
“I have not seen one person interviewed on the major networks tonight that has appropriately expressed the American people’s rage and disgust about Trump being convicted,” Greene tweeted.
“Y’all have no idea how people truly feel about this. This is not good.”
Greene went on to write: “Stormy Daniels makes a living having sex on video, she’s a nasty pornographer. She’s not offended by anything at all.
“The American people are OFFENDED by all of this and everyone involved and they are MOST OFFENDED by people who sit on the sidelines and do NOTHING to stop it.”

Nancy Pelosi

In a tweet, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is a staunch critic of Trump, tweeted, “This moment is a somber one for America. Trial by a jury of peers is a fundamental principle of democracy, which must be respected.”

Chuck Schumer

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer tweeted, “No one is above the law.”
“The verdict speaks for itself,” Schumer said.
Jurors reached a unanimous verdict, finding Trump guilty of falsifying 34 business records to conceal Hush money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels in the lead up to the 2016 U.S. presidential elections.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, a Democrat, said Trump added ” felon” to his list of titles, according to a tweet on X on Thursday. 
“Donald Trump is a racist, a homophobe, a grifter, and a threat to this country. He can now add more more title to his list: a felon.”.

Robert F. Kennedy (RFK)

In a tweet on X, RFK Jr. chastised the Democrats, whom he accused of trying  to defeat Mr. Trump in the courtroom rather than during the Nov. 5 elections. 
“The Democratic Party’s strategy is to beat President Trump in the courtroom rather than the ballot box. This will backfire in November. Even worse, it is profoundly undemocratic,” said Kennedy, an independent presidential candidate in the 2024 elections. “America deserves a president who can win at the ballot box without compromising our government’s separation of powers or weaponizing the courts. You can’t save democracy by destroying it first.”
RFK noted that Democrats “are afraid they will lose in the voting booth,” which is why they are trying him in court. .
“I’m also running against President Trump in this election. The difference is I’m challenging him on his record,” he said.

The Biden Campaign

The Biden campaign erupted in cheers as the jury found Trump guilty on all counts.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, described Thursday’s verdict as an indication that “no one is above the law.”
“Today’s verdict reaffirms that no one is above the law. In preparation for a verdict in this trial, I directed my Administration to closely coordinate with local and federal law enforcement and we continue to monitor the situation,” Hochul said in a statement.
“We are committed to protecting the safety of all New Yorkers and the integrity of our judicial system,” she added.
12 jurors found Trump, 77, guilty of falsifying business records in the case brought against him by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

New York Republican Party 

The New York Republican Party described Thursday’s verdict against Donald Trump as a “miscarriage of justice” that has the “Biden administration’s fingerprints” all over the “purely political prosecution.”
“This verdict is a miscarriage of justice more befitting a banana republic than the United States of America. It will ultimately be overturned at the Supreme Court,” NYGOP Chair Ed Cox said in a statement.
“The Biden administration’s fingerprints are all over this purely political prosecution,” added Cox. “We must redouble our efforts to elect President Trump and fight back against those who would wield the levers of justice against their political opponents.”
End Cox is the son-in-law of former President Richard Nixon.

Tim Scott

A Republican Senator from. South Carolina, Tim Scott, said the guilty verdict was “absolute injustice.”
“This erodes our justice system,” Scott posted on X. He posted a video alongside the statement, “Hear me clearly: You cannot silence the American people. You cannot stop us from voting for change.

Sen. John Thune

Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who is second to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), said that the case was “politically motivated.”
“This case was politically motivated from the beginning, and today’s verdict does nothing to absolve the partisan nature of this prosecution,” Thune said. “Regardless of outcome, more and more Americans are realizing that we cannot survive four more years of Joe Biden. With President Trump in the White House and a Republican majority in the U.S. Senate, we can finally end the disastrous Biden-Schumer agenda that’s crushing American families and businesses.”
Several Senate Republicans described Thursday’s verdict as a “sham” and a “disgrace” linked to the 2024 presidential elections. 
In a post on X, Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), said, “This verdict is a disgrace, and this trial should have never happened.”
“Now more than ever, we need to rally around @realdonaldtrump , take back the White House and Senate, and get this country back on track. The real verdict will be Election Day.”

The Trump Campaign

In a post on X, the Trump campaign said, “The American people see through Crooked Joe Biden’s rigged show trial.”. 
“So many Americans were moved to donate to President Trump’s campaign that the WinRed pages went down. We are working on getting the website back online as quickly as possible.”
Sen. John Cornyn
Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who is running to replace Mitch McConnell (Ky.) as Senate GOP leader, called the verdict a “disgrace.”
This verdict is a disgrace, and this trial should have never happened. Now more than ever, we need to rally around @realdonaldtrump, take back the White House and Senate, and get this country back on track. The real verdict will be Election Day,” he wrote on social platform X.

Mike Johnson

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) described Trump’s conviction as “absurd.’
“Today is a shameful day in American history,” Johnson said in a statement after the verdict.
“The American people rightfully see this is lawfare, and they know it is—and dangerous,” he added. “President Trump will rightfully appeal this absurd verdict—and he WILL WIN.”
Former president Donald Trump said the Nov. 5 elections will produce ” real vverdict. He said last Thursday outside the courtroom shortly after the guilty verdict, adding he was an “innocent man” and vowed to “keep fighting.”
“This was a rigged, disgraceful trial. The real verdict is going to be Nov. 5 by the people, and they know what happened here and everybody knows what happened here,” Trump said.