Good evening. First and foremost I want to thank the jury for its service. Jurors perform a fundamental civic duty. Their service is literally the cornerstone of our judicial system.
We should all be thankful for the careful attention that the jury paid to the evidence and the law and their time and commitment over these past several weeks.
12 every day New Yorkers (and of course the alternates) heard testimony from 22 witnesses including former and current employees of the defendant, media executives, book publishers, custodians of records, and others.
They reviewed call logs, text messages, and emails. They heard recordings. They saw checks and invoices, bank statements, and calendar appointments.
This type of white-collar prosecution is core to what we do at the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
In the 1930s, District Attorney Thomas Dewey ushered in the era of the modern, independent, professional prosecutor.
For now nearly 90 years dedicated professionals in this Office have built upon that fine tradition.
A major part of our practice during that nearly 90 years has been public integrity work including cases involving jurists, local and state electeds, public servants and others.
I want to thank this phenomenal prosecution team, embodying the finest traditions of this Office – professionalism, integrity, dedication and service.
They are model public servants, and I am proud and humbled to serve side by side with them.
The 12 every day jurors vowed to make a decision based on the evidence and the law — and the evidence and the law alone.
Their deliberations led them to a unanimous conclusion, beyond a reasonable doubt: That the defendant, Donald J. Trump, is guilty of 34 counts of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree, to conceal a scheme to corrupt the 2016 election.
While this defendant may be unlike any other in American history, we arrived at this trial, and ultimately today at this verdict, in the same manner as every other case that comes through the courtroom doors: by following the facts and the law and doing so without fear or favor.
I want to conclude by expressing deep gratitude to the NYPD and the officers of the Office of Court Administration for securing the courthouse, all of our safety, making sure the courthouse and all of the other matters that are important in their own right, continued seamlessly. They will continue to be and have always been tremendous partners. their work to maintain safety and keep the operations of the courthouse running smoothly. They have been, and will continue to be, incredible partners.
Thank you.
