Trump trial: Highlights from day 1 of jury deliberations - The Associated Press

Jurors are asking to have testimony about three critical developments in the alleged hush money scheme reread to them.

They've asked to rehear former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker's and ex-Trump fixer Michael Cohen's accounts of an August 2015 meeting with Trump at Trump Tower where the tabloid boss agreed to be the "eyes and ears" of his fledgling presidential campaign. Pecker said the plan involved publishing positive stories about Trump and negative stories about his opponents, identifying potentially damaging stories about Trump so they could be squashed before being published. That, prosecutors say, was the beginning of the catch-and-kill scheme at the heart of the case.

Jurors also want to hear Pecker's account of a phone call he allegedly received from Trump while he was at an investor meeting in New Jersey. The publisher testified that Trump tracked him down and phoned him after hearing a rumor that another outlet had offered to buy former Playboy model Karen McDougal's story alleging that she had a yearlong affair with Trump in the mid-2000s.

Pecker testified that on the call, Trump told him, "Karen is a nice girl," and asked, "What do you think I should do?" Pecker said he replied: "I think you should buy the story and take it off the market." He added that Trump told him he doesn't buy stories because they always get out and that Cohen would be in touch.

Defense attorney Emil Bove, left, cross examines David Pecker on the witness stand with Judge Juan Merchan presiding, Friday, April 26, 2024, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)

The publisher said he came away from the conversation thinking Trump was aware of the specifics of McDougal's claims. Pecker said he believed the story was true and would have been embarrassing to Trump and his campaign if it were made public. The National Enquirer's parent company, American Media Inc., eventually paid McDougal $150,000 for the rights to her story in an agreement that also included writing and other opportunities with its fitness and other publications.

The fourth item jurors requested is Pecker's testimony about his decision in October 2016 to back out of an agreement to then sell the rights to McDougal's story to Trump through a company Cohen had established for the transaction, known as an "assignment of rights."

"I called Michael Cohen, and I said to him that the agreement, the assignment deal is off. I am not going forward. It is a bad idea, and I want you to rip up the agreement," Pecker testified. "He was very, very, angry. Very upset. Screaming, basically, at me."

Pecker testified that he reiterated to Cohen that he wasn't going forward with the agreement and told him to, "Rip it up."

"Michael Cohen said, 'The Boss is going to be very angry at you,'" Pecker testified.

▶ Read more about what witnesses said throughout the trial.

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