One week after former President Donald Trump was convicted of 34 felony counts by a 12-member jury, the judge on Friday raised concern about a social media post shared to the court’s page around the time the jury’s verdict came down by a person claiming to be the “cousin” of a juror.
“Today, the Court became aware of a comment that was posted on the Unified Court System’s public Facebook page and which I now bring to your attention,” Judge Juan Merchan shared in a letter to Trump’s attorneys and prosecutors with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office.
“In the comment, the user, ‘Michael Anderson,’ states: ‘My cousin is a juror and says Trump is getting convicted … Thank you folks for all your hard work!!! ….'” Merchan wrote in the letter.
Merchan said the comment was left in response to a May 29 posting on the court system’s Facebook page. It’s labeled by the social media platform as “one week old,” according to Merchan, meaning it’s not clear when the comment was posted. He said the comment was “regarding oral arguments in the Fourth Department of the Appellate Division unrelated to this proceeding.”
The original post by the account for the New York State Unified Court System could no longer be located on its Facebook page, though there were similar comments by Anderson on previous posts, particularly one dated May 20 at 9:01 a.m., where Anderson again claimed to be a cousin to a juror.
“Thank you for all your hard against the MAGA crazies! My cousin is a juror on Trumps criminal
case and they’re going to convict him tomorrow according to her. Thank you New York courts!!!!” Anderson wrote, according to a screenshot captured by investigative reporter Jacqueline Sweet. His comment was written under a New York court system post with the top line: “PROMOTING DIVERSITY IN THE COURTS: HON. JEFFREY K. OING.”
The Facebook profile for Anderson seen in the reporter’s screenshots describes himself as “Transabled & a professional sh** poster,” making his claims seem more dubious than previously described.
The comments by Anderson on the May 20 post appeared to be hidden or removed as of 5:50 p.m. on Friday, but the court system’s post remained.
Trump was found guilty on May 30 of 34 felony counts for falsification of business records tied to efforts to conceal hush money payments to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election.
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It’s unclear what may come of the judge’s Friday evening notice at this time, though the former president’s attorneys and the prosecution were placed on notice and could react promptly to the letter.
The Washington Examiner contacted attorneys for Trump and Bragg’s office.