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Donald Trump was able to forego some of what typically comes with being arrested, such as getting handcuffed or having his mug shot taken. Yet one of the features of being a criminal defendant in New York could lead to the former president being tried and even sentenced if he doesn’t show up to his own proceedings in the future.
Judge Juan Merchan gave Trump what are known as “Parker warnings,” named for a New York case that involved trying a defendant who isn’t present in court. According to a court transcript, Merchan explained to Trump:
You can waive your right to be present if you voluntarily absent yourself from the proceedings.
So, if it is determined that at some point down the road you are not present at some stage because you chose not to be present, I do have the authority, I do have the right to find you voluntarily waived your right to be present and continue the proceedings in your absence.
There’s also another way that Trump can waive his right to be present, the judge added.
A second way you can lose your right or waive your right is to become disruptive, and I do not have any reason to believe that will happen. But, if you become disruptive to such a degree that it affects my ability to preside over this case and my ability to insure that the case is treated the way it needs to be treated for both sides, I do have the authority to remove you from the courtroom and continue in your absence.
Surely, Merchan could think of some reason that Trump might become disruptive, but the judge is doing everything he can to give this particularly sensitive defendant the benefit of the doubt. Merchan further explained to the 2024 Republican presidential hopeful that he could even be sentenced without being in court if he gives up his right to be present.
It may seem far-fetched to consider the possibility of Trump being tried “in absentia,” as it’s called. But Merchan pointed out that it’s something he goes over “with every individual who appears before me in the courtroom.” So, in a small way, the warnings put this unusual defendant on par with everyone else.
And is it really that far-fetched to imagine Trump boycotting a process that he has deemed unfair before it even started? The Parker warnings might just become relevant after all.