Why the events of today could decide two Trump criminal cases

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In a pair of courtrooms 750 miles apart on Thursday morning, two judges’ decisions could go a long way in determining which criminal cases Donald Trump will face before the 2024 election – and when he’ll face them.

The former US president plans to be in New York City, where Justice Juan Merchan has scheduled a Thursday hearing where he’s expected to finalize a start date for what will now likely become Trump’s first criminal trialon charges that he falsified business records to cover up his alleged affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels and influence the 2016 election.

That trial is currently slated to begin on 25 March, and now appears likely to proceed as planned, in large part because Trump’s team has successfully delayed his criminal trial in Washington DC focused on his role in the events of and leading up to January 6. Since the Washington trial’s start date is uncertain until the supreme court decides whether to review Trump’s presidential immunity claims (more on that below), that clears the calendar for this New York trial.

Merchan will also hear a number of arguments by Trump’s lawyers seeking to toss out the case, including allegations that Manhattan district attorney Alvin Bragg is politically biased against Trump and a claim that the 33 felony charges Trump is facing should be reduced to misdemeanors on technical grounds.

But Trump had trouble choosing which courtroom he wanted to be in. He had originally planned to be in Atlanta for a bombshell hearing that may well determine whether the criminal case that he allegedly conspired to illegally overturn Georgia’s 2020