Sentencing Donald Trump to jail could trigger a constitutional crisis an expert has warned as closing arguments begin in the former president's landmark trial.
Trump made history as the first former president to stand trial on criminal charges. He is accused of falsifying internal Trump Organisation records as part of a scheme to bury damaging stories that he feared could hurt his 2016 campaign, particularly as Trump’s reputation was suffering at the time from comments he had made about women.
With the US more politically divided than it's been since the Civil War, many are worried a conviction of Trump could just cause more problems. Speaking to the Mirror, Gregory Germain, Professor of Law at Syracuse University, explained where the trial could go and the problems it could cause.
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Trump speaks to the media as he arrives to courtHe said: "I doubt that there are any Trump supporters on the jury, and I think they are likely very offended by Trump's conduct in and out of court, and with the unethical behaviour. So, even though only one juror is necessary for Trump to obtain a mistrial, and even though it's a very flawed case, I predict that the jury will convict him.
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"Because it would be so outrageous to sentence Trump to jail for a first-time non-violent Class E felony, and doing so would cause a constitutional crisis and betray the judge's bias, I think the judge will sentence him to probation."
He added: "Ultimately, I think the verdict will be reversed on appeal. If the judge sentences Trump to prison, then the courts will intervene quickly. If Trump isn't sentenced to prison, the appeal will take its sweet time and be reversed after the election."
The 77-year-old former president (Getty Images)The allegations against Trump focus on payoffs to two women, porn actor Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal, who said they had extramarital sexual encounters with Trump years earlier, as well as to a Trump Tower doorman who claimed to have a story about a child he alleged Trump had out of wedlock. Trump says none of these supposed sexual encounters occurred.
Professor Germain expressed worry about the legal pursuit of Trump in this way. He said: "I have been very critical of the DA for bringing such a flawed case, and of the judge for pushing the case forward in such a confusing way, given all of the legal problems with the claims in the indictment. I don't think the DA proved that Trump committed fraud and a separate crime by facilitating the recording of the business records to show attorney fees rather than reimbursing hush money payments."
The prosecution's case hinges on the testimony of Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen (Getty Images)He continued: "I think the DA and the Judge are fully invested in obtaining a conviction. I think the judge will gloss over the legal issues in the jury instructions to allow a conviction by defining the legal issue around the propriety of paying hush money rather than the legality of paying hush money and how that relates to the document's charges."
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