Grand jury proceedings are secret, so everything we know about the special grand jury Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. has reportedly convened to consider evidence against former President Donald Trump and other Trump Organization executives is either from unidentified sources or speculation by lawyers, especially former prosecutors. The new grand jury's existence, first reported by The Washington Post on Tuesday evening, has been corroborated by The Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal, and other news organizations.
District attorneys don't generally bring cases to these juries unless they think they have evidence of a probable crime, former prosecutors say. "The prosecutors are convinced they have a case," Rebecca Roiphe, a former assistant Manhattan D.A., told the Post. "That's at least how I read it."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
That's also how CNN's Chris Cuomo and his panel read the situation. "This could be different things," including Vance finding "a way to leave it to the jury so if they come up short, it doesn't look like it was on him at the end of his term," Cuomo said. "Or, and this is more likely in this scenario, Cyrus Vance is ready to make a run at one of the most evasive targets we have ever seen. ... The big takeaway is, starting with this process, you may actually see Donald Trump get indicted." Tristan Snell, a former New York State assistant attorney general, predicted no indictments until after Christmas.
At MSNBC, Rachel Maddow cheerfully reminded viewers that Vance's investigation isn't the only legal peril Trump finds himself in.
No former president has ever been charged with a crime. Trump on Tuesday called Vance's investigation a political "witch hunt."
-
Political cartoons for November 30Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include the Saudi-China relationship, MAGA spelled wrong, and more
-
Rothermere’s Telegraph takeover: ‘a right-leaning media powerhouse’Talking Point Deal gives Daily Mail and General Trust more than 50% of circulation in the UK newspaper market
-
The US-Saudi relationship: too big to fail?Talking Point With the Saudis investing $1 trillion into the US, and Trump granting them ‘major non-Nato ally’ status, for now the two countries need each other
-
Pushing for peace: is Trump appeasing Moscow?In Depth European leaders succeeded in bringing themselves in from the cold and softening Moscow’s terms, but Kyiv still faces an unenviable choice
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
-
Brazil’s Bolsonaro behind bars after appeals run outSpeed Read He will serve 27 years in prison
-
South Africa wraps up G20 summit boycotted by USSpeed Read Trump has been sparring with South Africa in recent months
-
Trump pushes new Ukraine peace planSpeed Read It involves a 28-point plan to end the war
-
Americans traveling abroad face renewed criticism in the Trump eraThe Explainer Some of Trump’s behavior has Americans being questioned
-
UN Security Council backs Trump’s Gaza peace planSpeed Read The United Nations voted 13-0 to endorse President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to withdraw Israeli troops from Gaza
-
Chile picks leftist, far-right candidates for runoff voteSpeed Read The presidential runoff election will be between Jeannette Jara, a progressive from President Gabriel Boric’s governing coalition, and far-right former congressman José Antonio Kast
