Judge Juan Merchan has alerted former President Donald Trump's lawyers that an investigation is underway after it was discovered that a juror may have leaked the verdict early.
Judge Merchan issued an alert to Trump's lawyers and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg on Friday after a post to the court system’s Facebook page was discovered suggesting juror misconduct.
That post read, "My cousin is a juror and says Trump is getting convicted Thank you folks for all your hard work!!!!"
That post was dated before the jury's verdict was delivered and as such the court is now investigating the possibility that this was a real juror who leaked the decision.
While the investigation is in preliminary stages, this could serve as grounds for a mistrial claim from Trump's lawyers. If not a mistrial claim, Trump's lawyers could also use it in the upcoming appeals process.
A big part of Trump's appeal will be the unfair circumstances and jury shenanigans that went down in his New York hush-money trial.
Not only was the jury's conduct unusual thanks to Judge Merchan's unusual orders but there were allegations of bias against Trump. Considering the jury was pulled from New York City, Trump has a strong case for a politically biased jury.
Trump is set to be sentenced in July and is expected to immediately appeal that sentence and allegations of a juror leaking the verdict will only help his case.
Of course, that isn't the only argument that Trump has at his disposal when it comes to arguing for a mistrial and improper conviction.
The unusual structure of the charges against Trump will also strengthen an appeal against Trump's conviction. Bragg stacking misdemeanors on misdemeanors to somehow create a felony charge that is unlikely to hold up under appeal.
All of this is terrible news for Bragg who has become nationally recognized ever since he announced his case against Trump that was so flimsy that not even federal prosecutors were willing to bring it against Trump.
The case against Trump was always weak but it has become increasingly apparent that not even biased juries and the entire weight of the justice system can stop Trump.
Trump's conviction last week led to a surge in support of Trump's presidential campaign as they set new records for single-day fundraising.
If Trump manages to get his conviction overturned in an appeals court, it will only further vindicate everything he has said about the deep state and the Democrat conspiracy to stop him from achieving a 2nd term in the White House.
Democrats are likely going to regret the day that Alvin Bragg and his compatriots decided to abuse the justice system to try and stop Trump.
