Federal prosecutors asked a judge on Thursday to “admonish” Ward 8 D.C. Council member Trayon White over a video he shared with his 87,000 followers on Instagram where he discussed jury selection for his upcoming trial on federal bribery charges.
“In the video, the Defendant makes a blatant attempt to tamper with the jury pool for his upcoming trial by appealing to race, making disparaging comments about the jury selection process, and inflammatory comments about a separate jury trial,” wrote U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro in a filing to U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras.
In the video posted Wednesday, White is seen standing in front of a D.C. court building, where he makes some of the first public comments on his trial — which starts Sept. 14 — while weighing in on the jury-selection process, which will begin the week before.
“I feel really good and encouraged about my trial. I’m in good spirits … I trust my legal team,” he said. “But I can’t do this without getting the opportunity to have a jury of my peers. I’m not going to say that all Black people support me, all non-Black do or don’t support me, I just want to make sure that those in my community in Washington, D.C., take this very seriously. It’s just about me, but it’s about us.”
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White, a three-term lawmaker, stands accused of accepting tens of thousands of dollars from a D.C. businessman who wanted help landing more contracts with the city. The council member recently admitted that he accepted the payments, but has argued in court filings that he did nothing for the businessman in exchange. His defense attorneys have also said they may try to argue that he was entrapped by the government.
White is active on social media, but has also generated controversy with his freewheeling videos. In the video posted Wednesday, he said that only 22% of potential jurors in D.C. who are Black answer their jury summonses, and cited a murder trial that took place in Florida earlier this year where all Black jurors were dismissed by prosecutors.
“In America we have to ensure based on my Sixth Amendment right of a jury of my peers that I have a fair trial and a fair shake in fighting for my freedom,” he said.
“I’ve been elected two times … so I know there are people who do have faith in me and my work, but that’s not enough. I want to fight for my freedom and opportunity to have a fair trial. I’ve heard what Jeanine Pirro is saying about me, but we have to put the power in the jury of the people so I can get my side of the story out,” he added.
There have been past concerns that federal juries in D.C. don’t reflect the demographics of the city. During a criminal trial in 2023, defense attorneys shared data they said showed that 30% of potential jurors in federal trials were Black — compared to their 39% share of jury-eligible residents in the city.
But Pirro said White’s comments represented an “unabashed attempt to taint the jury,” and that they could prejudice the jury pool for the trial.
“For example, in one such comment, a person responds, ‘I agree. Everyone in this sweet city knows you were set up. We are targeted, especially when in an important position!!! Eyes wide open.’ In another comment, a person responds, ‘Praying that I get that summons. I would spend however long listening to case only to tell the rest of the jury NOT FKING GUILTY and that will not change,’” she said in the filing.
In a response filed Thursday afternoon, Warren Gary Kohlman, White’s defense attorney, said that in the video the council member “expressed nothing unlawful and, instead, expressly sought to uphold his constitutional right to a fair trial.”
“Moreover, the Government’s position threatens Mr. White’s First Amendment rights, in which he is entitled to express his opinion on his own case and on the workings of the federal criminal justice system in the District of Columbia,” wrote Kohlman. “As a practical matter, it is extremely unlikely at this point in time that Mr. White’s comments, expressly to encourage responses to jury summonses as required by law, could have an impact on the jury pool coming in next week for his trial, either for good or for ill.”
The issue of juries in D.C. has become a flash point over the last year, with some juries seeming to reject prosecutions stemming from the ramped-up federal presence and arrests in the city. One local group that has opposed federal intervention in D.C. has held educational events on how serving on a jury “is vital to safeguarding the rights of those who are most vulnerable to systemic biases.” Some critics have said that can amount to organized jury nullification.
The dustup between federal prosecutors and White represents the second time he has drawn attention ahead of the trial. Last month, Judge Contreras admonished White for a text message his council chief of staff, Sheila Bunn, sent to a potential witness for the prosecution. Bunn later told NOTUS the text message was sent in a personal capacity to a friend and that she had not discussed White’s upcoming trial with him.
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