On the first day of trial in the Sam Bankman-Fried case, in a dark, mahogany-walled courtroom in the Southern District Court of New York, Federal District Judge Lewis Kaplan asked whether the U.S. government had ever made any plea offers to the defendant. Government lawyers confirmed they did not.
The six-week trial got off to a slow start. The jury selection process began on Tuesday and was quiet and sober except for conversations between the judge, the parties and potential jurors.
Bankman-Fried took off his usual salesman pants and T-shirt and put on a suit and tie; his usually messy curly hair seemed to have been trimmed a bit. He didn't say much, saying "yes" only once when Kaplan asked him if he understood he had the right to testify.
Kaplan said the trial could take less than six weeks. He added that "rarely does it take this long" but there are no guarantees. However, the trial is likely to end before Thanksgiving. "
The seven charges against Bankman-Fried amounted to felonies, but Judge Kaplan presided over the trial in a more playful, friendly and positive light. He reminded potential jurors not to research or use any electronic devices to find news.
Some potential jurors claimed they heard about the high-profile case on the news, podcasts and other media; one potential juror claimed that her employer, venture capital and private equity firm Insight Partners, invested in FTX and its sister company Alameda, suggesting the trial may have close ties to her employer.
Kaplan expects 12 jurors and six alternates to be selected by the end of the day, possibly even before opening statements from both sides early Wednesday morning.