In an upcoming trial in New York concerning hush money allegations, a judge ruled that former President Donald Trump will be informed of the names of his jurors, while their addresses will remain undisclosed.
Judge Juan Merchan cited concerns of harassment and prejudice in his decision.
The order, published on Thursday, grants motions from prosecutors to restrict the disclosure of jurors' names to only parties involved in the case.
The disclosure of home or business addresses will be limited to each party's lead counsel. Judge Merchan referenced potential issues like bribery, jury tampering, or physical harm in his ruling.
Trump's legal team accepted the motions with the condition that jurors' names could be shared with other legal staff and consultants involved in the trial, scheduled to begin on March 25.
Trump faces 34 charges of falsifying business records related to alleged hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels by his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, during the 2016 campaign.
Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, claimed she was paid $130,000 by Cohen to keep quiet about an alleged affair with Trump in 2006. Cohen has stated he was reimbursed by Trump.
Trump has pleaded not guilty to the charges and has denied any financial misconduct.
Judge Merchan emphasized that the courtroom would remain open to the public during the trial, and access to the court would not be restricted by these protective measures.
He ordered that the parties submit explanations to the jurors regarding why their names and addresses are being withheld, aiming to minimize potential prejudice.
Prosecutors also requested that the court notify Trump that any harassing or disruptive behavior that threatens the jury's safety or integrity could result in forfeiture of his access to juror names.
Trump's team asked the judge to reject this request, and the judge reserved his decision pending a ruling on another request to restrict extrajudicial statements about the trial.
This ruling follows other cases where Trump has faced criticism from judges for his public remarks about trials.
In a recent civil fraud trial in New York, Judge Arthur Engoron imposed a gag order on Trump after he claimed a court staff member was biased against him.
Trump was fined twice for violating the gag order, which he argued violated his First Amendment rights.
Judge Tanya Chutkan also imposed a gag order for Trump's trial related to federal charges of allegedly trying to overturn the 2020 election results after he tried to influence and intimidate a potential key witness.
Trump stated that the order would restrict his political campaigning.
There is speculation that the jurors' names may be leaked, and Newsweek has reached out to Trump's lawyer for comment.