The Daily Fuckup

Jury selection in Donald Trump’s Manhattan criminal case opened on April 15, 2024, with the court confronting the most basic question in any trial: whether enough people in the room could set aside what they already knew, or thought they knew, and judge the case on the evidence.

The answer, on day one, was not many. Dozens of prospective jurors were excused after telling the court they could not be fair or impartial. By the end of the day, no jurors had been seated.

That is not a legal ruling and it does not decide the case. But it does show the practical problem facing any court trying to seat a jury for a defendant as instantly recognizable as Trump. The selection process was always going to be slower and more exacting than routine criminal trials, because the court had to keep filtering for people who could honestly say they had no fixed opinion that would get in the way.

Until a full panel is chosen, the trial cannot move to opening statements. So the first day was less about drama than arithmetic: enough qualified people, one by one, willing and able to serve. On April 15, the court did not get there yet.