Unsurprisingly, the jury in the Donald Trump hush money trial ended the first day of jury deliberations without reaching a verdict. These twelve men and women have a hefty responsibility on their hands, which is further complicated by the ins and outs of the case, such as the unreliability of the prosecution’s star witness, Michael Cohen, the Trump ex-CFO and lawyer, who could otherwise neatly tie the State’s argument together.
It is more than fair to say that, in this highly political case, the possibilities of a hung jury and a subsequent mistrial are nowhere close to zero. This brings many to the question of what actually a hung jury means, what a mistrial is, and what distinguishes the two terms and outcomes.
What is a mistrial?
A mistrial is a trial which is legally invalidated. A mistrial can happen for multiple reasons, and at any given time throughout the trial. In the ongoing Donald Trump New York hush-money case, since the jury is already deliberating at the time of this writing, it means that a mistrial could only occur after the jury emerges from the deliberation room, after having exhausted all debate.
But in cases whose progress hasn’t advanced yet to jury deliberation, a mistrial could be declared due to a Prejudicial Error, which Black’s Law Dictionary defines as “a mistake that is made in handling a trial resulting in harm to the complaining party.” In this criminal case, such an error would not have been too surprising, judging by how difficult it was to find an unbiased jury for Trump in New York. At this point, it is unlikely, unless a juror admits they have been exposed to evidence or coverage they should not have been.
A Procedural Error could also have taken place, meaning the Court had not followed proper legal procedure; in Trump’s current case, for example, a mistrial could be declared had any of the lawyers displayed inadmissible behavior that compromised the integrity of the proceedings. Although unlikely, Juror Misconduct could also take place, were any of the jurors to be caught chit-chatting about the case outside the courtroom.
What is a hung jury?
A hung jury, also called a deadlocked jury, is a jury unable to reach a unanimous decision. In the Donald Trump hush money case, they must, as Judge Juan Merchan instructed, hand out an agreed upon “guilty” or “not guilty” verdict on each of the 34 counts. All it takes is one juror to dig intheir heels and not lend their consensus for the jury to be considered hung.
When there is a hung jury, a mistrial occurs. In Trump’s case, Judge Merchan may instruct jurors to deliberate further in the event that the jury comes out of the room deadlocked. But there is only so much the judge can do, especially in the case of a judge being as scrutinized by the Right, as the presiding judge is in this case.
If a mistrial were to occur, the prosecution may choose to retry the case with a different jury, since the Double Jeopardy standard does not apply in case of a hung jury. This turn of events, although not as great as an acquittal, could benefit Trump, since it avoids an immediate conviction, and there is no telling when a new trial date might be set.
