Juror excused from Trump hush money trial due to fear of influence: What you need to know

The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial said on Thursday (April 17) that a juror had been excused from Donald Trump's criminal trial because she claimed to be terrified by the disclosure of some details of her identification.

Why did the judge excuse the juror?

Speaking before the jury, the juror noted that after determining from press reports that she was amember of the jury, her friends, relatives, and coworkers had been in touch with her. "I don't believe at this point that I can be fair andunbiased,and let the outside influences not affect my decision-making in the courtroom," said the juror.

On Tuesday, April 16, the second day of the jury selection process, the juror was selected along with six other people. The jurors, whose namesare withheldfrom everybody but the attorneys involved in the case, will have to provide a verdict in the nation's first-ever criminal trial of a former president.

What is the Trump hush money trial about?

Evidence about claims that Trump and his former lawyerMichaelCohenengagedin a scheme to fabricate documents to conceal payments that Trump made to Cohen willbe shownbefore the jury. The reimbursements were purportedly for a "hush money" payment that Cohen made to adult film star Stormy Daniels, who claimed to have had an affair with Trump years prior, shortly before the 2016 election.

In response to the accusations, Trump has pleaded not guilty and denied having an affair with Daniels. Prosecutors, according to him, are pursuing the case for political purposes.

Numerous inhabitants of Manhattan are in the pool from which the jurorsare selected. After statingthat theycan serve impartially, candidatesare askedto provide information about their personal life, political beliefs, and news consumption patterns. Twelve jurorsin all, plus six alternates, will make up the final jury.