A comment posted on social media purporting to know the outcome of the New York criminal trial against former President Donald Trump was likely an internet troll, according to recent reports. New York Judge Juan Merchan took the threat seriously enough to send a letter to both prosecution and defense attorneys in the case.
Merchan’s letter followed a comment from an individual who claimed to know the outcome due to contact with a juror. The account, which was under the moniker “Michael Anderson” posted
“My cousin is a juror and says Trump is getting convicted! Thank you folks for all your hard work!!!!” The profile itself calls the poster an obscene term for an internet troll.
The same account also posted another similar comment.
“Thank you for all your hard [sic] against the MAGA crazies! My cousin is a juror on Trumps criminal case and they’re going to convict him tomorrow according to her,” it read.
The same account later stated that he and the supposed juror cousin were now married.
The new revelations likely mean that the original comments were facetious and not accurate.
This weekend the former president called the case a “MISTRIAL!” He linked an article about teh online comment and the letter from the judge.
Mistrial!
Donald Trump Truth Social 11:54 AM EST 06/09/24https://t.co/mzxbeomxBd
— Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) June 9, 2024
The revelation of the comment and the judge’s letter came as Merchan is weighing Trump’s sentence in the case. It is unclear whether or not the judge would sentence Trump to jail.
The relations between Trump and the judge have been strained in the last several months. The former president called the judge “conflicted” on multiple locations and made comments about the political affiliations of his daughter.
Furthermore, Merchan placed Trump under a gag order during much of the trial. Trump was barred from criticizing court officials, the judge and the prosecution. Trump called it a violation of his First Amendment rights.
The former president was fined by Merchan for alleged violations of the gag order, ordering Trump to pay thousands of dollars.
