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Former US President Trump attends hush money hearing over porn star payment, New York, USA - 25 Mar 2024

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Former U.S. President Donald Trump appears at court in New York

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Michael Cohen Testifies Before the House Intelligence Committee

Former US president Trump's hush money criminal trial continues in New York City, USA - 09 May 2024

Michael Cohen, Longtime Lawyer for Donald Trump, Testifies at the U.S. Capitol Before the House Intelligence Committee 

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Former President Donald Trump's Hush Money Trial Continues In New York

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Justin Lane

Former president <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/donald-trump/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">Donald Trump</a> is familiar with New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan, the judge overseeing his criminal case in Manhattan. Trump has been charged there with falsifying business records in connection with a hush money payment made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels in 2016.

Merchan, who has sat on the New York bench since 2009, also presided over the jury trial in 2022 of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/12/06/trump-organization-guilty-tax-fraud/" target=_blank>Trump’s namesake real estate company</a>, which resulted in a conviction, and the prosecution of the company’s longtime chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg.

Here’s what you need to know about Merchan:

The judge, who was born in Colombia and grew up in the Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens, has held various posts as a lawyer and jurist in New York government since the 1990s, including working as a family court judge in the Bronx. Merchan attended Baruch College and the Hofstra University School of Law,<a href="https://iapps.courts.state.ny.us/judicialdirectory/Bio?judge_id=Jvv5ZfC8zLC57yZndmF4ow%3D%3D" target=_blank> according to his court biography</a>.

He was also an assistant district attorney in the New York County district attorney’s office — the agency now led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the charges against Trump.

Merchan now works at the New York Supreme Court, a felony-level trial court with branches in each New York borough and each county around the state.

As part of his portfolio, Merchan oversees a specialized court that gives treatment options and merit-based plea agreements to eligible defendants who are in the throes of mental illness when they commit crimes. The program prioritizes treatment and recovery. Graduates can have their charges reduced or dismissed.

After Trump was <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/03/30/trump-ny-indictment/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target=_blank>indicted</a> by a New York grand jury, he appeared in Merchan’s courtroom and pleaded <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/04/04/trump-indictment-charges-new-york-arraignment/?itid=lk_inline_manual_2" target=_blank>not guilty</a>. He and his lawyers have since appeared for multiple pretrial hearings. The lawyers tried multiple times to delay the case, mostly without success.

Here are the 34 charges against Trump and what they mean

The trial centers on how Trump repaid the lawyer and fixer who gave the money to Daniels and on whether he falsified business records to benefit his 2016 presidential campaign.

Merchan has the job of figuring out how to hold a criminal proceeding involving a famously combative former president who is still protected by the U.S. Secret Service and whose court appearances often create a media circus.

But it’s not the first time he’s had to deal with high-profile cases. In 2015, he handled the trial of<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/03/25/the-freedom-tower-skydivers-werent-the-first-heres-the-insane-morbid-history-of-urban-base-jumping/" target=_blank> four BASE jumpers</a> who sneaked into the One World Trade Center building when it was under construction and launched themselves from the top. During his first years serving on the New York County criminal court, Merchan oversaw the case of a woman accused of operating a pricey escort service whose tabloid moniker, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/judge-merchan-gristina-trump/2021/10/20/9947c6e2-31b5-11ec-a1e5-07223c50280a_story.html" target=_blank>“the soccer mom madam,”</a> fueled headlines for months.

JM Rieger

The former president — the first to be charged with a crime — has not been shy about criticizing the judge. Trump has lashed out at Merchan on social media shortly after his indictment, <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/110118215721606583" target=_blank>declaring that the judge “HATES ME.”</a>

Merchan “is the same person who ‘railroaded’ my 75 year old former CFO, Allen Weisselberg, to take a ‘plea’ deal,” Trump wrote.

Weisselberg <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/08/18/weisselberg-trump-guilty-plea/" target=_blank>pleaded guilty in 2022</a> to 15 counts, including tax fraud, conspiracy and grand larceny. Trump was not personally implicated in that case.

In the week’s leading up to his own trial, Trump has repeatedly attacked both Merchan and his adult daughter, who is part owner of<b> </b>a political consulting and marketing company that has worked on campaign materials for the Biden-Harris campaign, Rep. Adam Schiff (Calif.) and other prominent Democrats.

Merchan imposed a limited gag order that bars Trump from talking about witnesses, court staff and lawyers directly involved in the case. He later expanded the order to include his own family members and Bragg’s family members. Trump, who is again <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/presidential-candidates-2024/" target="_blank" class="contextual_link">running for president</a>, is still allowed to criticize Bragg, Merchan and the case against him.

Washington University in St. Louis, BA

Perry Stein covers the Justice Department and FBI for The Washington Post. She previously covered D.C. education. Before she joined The Post in 2015, she was a staff writer for Washington City Paper and wrote for the Miami Herald. 

Perry Stein

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, MS

Montclair State University, BA in History

Shayna Jacobs is a federal courts and law enforcement reporter on the national security team at The Washington Post, where she covers the Southern and Eastern districts of New York. 

Shayna Jacobs

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Who is Juan Merchan, the judge in Trump’s N.Y. hush money trial?

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Manhattan grand jury votes to indict Former US President Donald J. Trump, New York, USA - 31 Mar 2023

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