Left: Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg attends a press conference on illegal guns arrests and seizure on the plaza in front of Police Headquarters on December 4, 2023. (Lev Radin/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images). Right: Former President Donald Trump leaves Manhattan criminal court, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

An extensive history of public and repeated attacks on trial jurors and grand jurors by Donald Trump was cause enough for a judge in New York to issue a protective order over the names of jurors who will soon weigh allegations that the former president falsified records to cover up hush money payments he made to a porn star ahead of the 2016 election.

The order from Manhattan Judge Juan Manuel Merchan will block the juror’s names and information from the public view but Trump and his attorneys as well as prosecutors will still have access to the information. Typically, juror names are public record but when a potential threat might be posed to their safety as a result of the charges being tried or individuals involved, they can be sealed.

In the case of Trump, Merchan wrote that the court found sufficient cause to believe there “is a likelihood of bribery, jury tampering, or of physical injury or harassment of juror(s).”

“As requested by Defendant, this Court will take reasonable precautions to minimize any potential prejudice to either party. The precautions may include, but not be limited to, not disclosing the existence of the protective measures unless absolutely necessary to allay juror concerns, providing neutral explanations for the procedures and giving appropriate jury instructions,” the order states.