Judge Juan Merchan took the bench on Monday morning at approximately 9:30 in the criminal trial of former President Donald Trump.
The prosecution’s opening statement in Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan was scheduled to last nearly twice as long as the defense’s, according to NBC News, which was providing live updates on the trial throughout the morning. The trial was expected to last a little over an hour.
The last juror to be impaneled last week, alternate juror number six, had a dental “emergency” and had made an appointment for 3:00 this afternoon.
That appointment was pushed forward to 1:20, though, so Merchan announced that the court would adjourn at 12:30 PM so she could arrive at her appointment on time.
“An alternate juror has an emergency dental appointment this afternoon. Tomorrow, Judge Merchan plans to end at 2 p.m. for the Passover holiday. Most jurors looked straight ahead as they passed the defense table on the way out of the courtroom,” the Associated Press reported.
