'Trump will be convicted so fast it will make his head spin': former federal prosecutor
Friday's $83.3 million judgment against former President Donald Trump in writer E. Jean Carroll's defamation lawsuit is proof that the former president can and will be convicted in criminal court, according to a veteran federal prosecutor.
In a Saturday thread posted to X (formerly Twitter), Glenn Kirschner — who was an assistant US Attorney in the office of the US Attorney for the District of Columbia — predicted that Carroll's judgment is merely the first guilty verdict in court Trump will experience in 2024.
"When cases move from the court of public opinion into courts of law, Trump loses," Kirschner wrote. "Here’s the thing: the rules of evidence don’t apply in the court of public opinion. So Trump lies every day in his desperate attempt to continue to deceive [and] grift from his ever-shrinking gaggle of supporters."
POLL: Should Trump be allowed to hold office again?
"Once Trump’s criminal trials commence — and the rules of evidence and the rules of procedure control the proceedings — Trump will be convicted so fast it will make his head spin," Kirschner added.
Kirschner noted that Judge Arthur Engoron has yet to issue his ruling in the New York civil fraud trial, in which Attorney General Letitia James is seeking both $370 million in damages and banning Trump from serving as an officer in any New York-based company. Kirschner also reminded followers that while the ex-president tries to wage a war on prosecutors and judges, "the rules of evidence, the rules of procedure, and the rule of law all apply inside courtrooms."
""Yes, it’s taken FAR too long and yes, our institutions of government need to learn that delay, timidity, and appeasement is NOT the way to deal with an insurrectionist and aspiring dictator. But criminal convictions of Donald Trump ARE coming," he tweeted.
Aside from Judge Engoron's pending verdict, Trump is also currently awaiting a ruling from both a DC Circuit Court of Appeals panel on the question of absolute broad presidential immunity, and a decision from the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on whether his disqualification from the Colorado Republican primary ballot will be upheld.
READ MORE: Legal expert: SCOTUS should disqualify Trump given 'judicial conservatism' behind CO ruling
Trump's first criminal trial is scheduled for March 4 in US District Court in Washington, DC, where Department of Justice special counsel Jack Smith has indicted the former president on four felony charges relating to January 6. However, those proceedings are on hold until the immunity question is resolved. In the meantime, the former president will likely have his first trial in Manhattan on March 25, where district attorney Alvin Bragg has indicted Trump on multiple felony counts relating to alleged hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
