Former first lady Melania Trump may prove to be a “very powerful” boost to her husband’s criminal trial in New York City, according to a former Manhattan prosecutor.
Jury selection in the hush-money indictment against Donald Trump wrapped up on Friday, where the former president is facing 34 felony counts related to his alleged efforts to conceal a hush-money payment made to an adult film star, Stormy Daniels, during his 2016 election. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and call them a political witch hunt.
As standard with criminal defendants, Trump is expected to attend all trial days for the case. His wife, however, was not present during the first four days in the court last week.
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Speculation has risen as to whether Melania Trump could be called to the witness stand and forced to testify against her husband, who she has continued to support during his 2024 reelection run. Although according to Mark Bederow, a criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor for the Manhattan district attorney’s office, Melania’s testimony could be used to the former president’s advantage, telling Business Insider, “There’s no question that Melania is the most important family member to be there.”
He noted that Melania’s support could be “potentially very powerful” in light of the allegations against Trump. The $130,000 payment to Daniels was allegedly made so that she would keep quiet about a previous affair she had with the former president. He has denied ever having relations with Daniels.
“Certainly, if Melania were there supporting him, that potentially sends a message that ‘I support him, I’m OK, I believe, perhaps, this didn’t happen,'” Bederow said. “I think that can only have a positive impact on the jury.”
Newsweek sent a request for comment to Melania Trump through the former first lady’s press site on Sunday.
None of Trump’s family members have appeared in court since trial began, although Melania and the former president’s three oldest children—Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Ivanka Trump—were listed as possible witnesses by Judge Juan Merchan during the first day of trial.
Legal experts previously told Newsweek that there is a chance the former first lady could be legally forced to take the stand against her husband, although former federal prosecutor and elected state attorney Michael McAuliffe said that the likelihood of prosecutors going after her “is extremely low to non-existent” given that she has no involvement in the allegations against her husband.
“In fact, she’s the putative victim in the illicit sex part of the story,” he added.
Farah Griffin, a onetime aide to Trump, has also said that calling Melania to testify could “backfire” against Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who brought the indictment against the former president.
“I think this will come down to more of a paper trail kind of case and I think they have the facts there,” Griffin said during Wednesday’s airing of ABC’s The View. “I think to call her [Melania] would look salacious, would likely backfire too. She’s never broken with him on major issues.”
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.