Who is Juan Merchan? NY judge to preside over Donald Trump’s criminal arraignment

On Tuesday, former US President Donald Trump will face a New York courtroom where a seasoned Columbian-born judge will listen to his case. Acting New York Supreme Court Judge, Juan Merchan is no stranger to the twice impeached 45th President of the United States of America. Trump’s historic arraignment on Tuesday can be considered Merchan’s most high-profile case to date. The whole ordeal is bound to take place after New York Grand jury made a historic decision and voted to indict the business mogul-tuned politician. With the March 30 voting, Trump became the first president to be indicted in a criminal case in US history. While the charges against Trump were not made public, it was revealed that the case was related to Trump’s involvement in paying hush money to porn star Stormy Daniels. 

Meanwhile, the New York Supreme court judge shares a long history with the former US President. Merchan’s reputation is also one for the history books. According to CNN, Merchan has been described by his colleagues as a “tough” judge filled with compassion. However, in the past, the former US President had no kind words to describe the 60-year-old Supreme Court Judge. 

Who is Juan Merchan? 

The much-celebrated jurist was born in Bogota, Colombia from where he moved to the United States with his family when he was just 6 years old. Merchan grew up in Queens, New York which is known for its Latin demography. According to The New York Times, Merchan got his first job carrying groceries at the age of 9 and since then there was no going back. The New York Judge held several side jobs before he bagged his business degree from Baruch College in 1990. According to the New York Law Journal, he later received his law degree from Hofstra University in 1994. 

He then went on to work in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office for five years before he took a job at the New York State Attorney General’s office for five years. Interestingly, years later, these two offices will be eventually involved in the joint investigation of Donald Trump’s illicit finances. According to the New York Law Journal, it was New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who appointed the Colombian-origin jurist to be a judge in the Bronx family court in the year 2006. In 2009, he was named as the acting state Supreme Court justice and oversaw several criminal cases. 

When the worlds collide: Merchan’s history with Trump 

The former US President did not have favourable opinions for the New York jurist. While the veteran jurist has a sterling reputation, Trump has dismissed the judge in the past and described him as a “hater”. The root cause for this dismay is the fact that it was Merchan who sentenced Trump’s close aide and former CFO of Trump’s two organisations, Allen Weisselberg to prison. Last year, the acting New York Supreme Court judge presided over the Trump organisation’s tax fraud trial. In the trial, his companies were found guilty on 17 counts including “charges of conspiracy and falsifying business records,” NBC New York reported.  Merchan also oversaw a criminal fraud case that involved former adviser Steve Bannon. 

After the news that Merchan will likely preside over Trump’s Tuesday arraignment broke out, the former US President went on a rant against the New York judge. “The Judge ‘assigned’ to my Witch Hunt Case, a ‘Case’ that has NEVER BEEN CHARGED BEFORE, HATES ME. His name is Juan Manuel Marchan,” Trump wrote on his social media platform TruthSocial, as per the report by NBC News.  He alleged that Merchan was 'handpicked' by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Trump also brought out his tax fraud case that involved Weisselberg in his rant. "He (Merchan) is the same person who 'railroaded' my 75-year-old former CFO, Allen Weisselberg, to take a 'plea' deal (Plead GUILTY, even if you are not, 90 DAYS, fight us in Court, 10 years (life!) in jail. He strong-armed Allen, which a judge is not allowed to do, & treated my companies, which didn’t 'plead,' VICIOUSLY," the former US President wrote in another post on TruthSocial. Overall the former reality television star has have harsh views about New York Jurist. 

A look at Merchan’s other Monumental cases

While the Tuesday proceedings can be considered one of the most monumental cases in the veteran jurist's life, Merchan presided over several other significant cases, one of which even went on to become a Lifetime Movie. In 2012, Merchan presided over a case that involved a murder suspect who said he was cursed by a “witch doctor”. The suspect was sentenced to 25 years in prison after he pled guilty in between the trial. During the trial Merchan denied the suspect’s request to call the so-called “witch doctor”, to testify on his behalf. 

Mechan dealt with another pivotal case in 2012, which is popularly knowns as the so-called “Soccer Mom Madam Case”. This case involved a suburban woman who was accused of running a high-end prostitution ring. The mom in question eventually plead guilty and was sentenced to six months in prison. Another interesting fact about this case was that it inspired the 2021 lifetime movie called “Soccer Mom Madam”. Overall, Merchan has been known for his stellar record in ensuring justice. Hence, it’ll be interesting to see which way the Trump indictment saga will head.