Trump to be charged over hush money
4 Min Read
The indictment was voted on by the grand jury on Thursday afternoon and filed under seal.
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Former US President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference 2022 (CPAC) in Orlando, Florida. (AFP)
US former US President Donald Trump will reportedly face charges related to payments made to an adult performer right before the 2016 election.
The indictment was voted on by the grand jury on Thursday afternoon and filed under seal, Politico reported citing two people familiar with the matter.
The Manhattan District Attorney's Office filed a lawsuit against Trump, and its main focus is a $130,000 payment to Stormy Daniels, an adult film actress who claimed she had an affair with Trump. He has denied the relationship.
It is worth noting that the former President is the first US president to ever face criminal charges.
Trump's legal team maintained on Thursday the former president's innocence. “President Trump has been indicted. He did not commit any crime,” the attorneys Joe Tacopina and Susan Necheles stated. “We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in Court.”
Simultaneously, Trump issued a statement, referring to it as a “witch-hunt,” and adding that the move was an attempt by Democrats to meddle in the 2024 election.
“This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history,” Trump stated.
“The Democrats have lied, cheated and stolen in their obsession with trying to ‘Get Trump,’ but now they’ve done the unthinkable — indicting a completely innocent person in an act of blatant Election Interference.”
Trump also bashed District Attorney Alvin Bragg, accusing him of “doing Joe Biden’s dirty work.”
According to a law enforcement official, Trump's lawyers responded that the deadline was too short and the US Secret Service needed more time to get ready when the district attorney's office requested that he turn himself in on Friday.
Tacopina confirmed the conversation that the former president's surrender had not been scheduled.
“This evening we contacted Mr. Trump’s attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan D.A.’s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal,” a spokesperson for the district attorney’s office said. “Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected.”
Last week, Trump expected his arrest and called on his supporters to "protest, take our nation back!"
Despite growing fear that Trump’s indictment could ignite protests from his supporters, a spokesperson for New York Mayor Eric Adams claimed that "there were no credible threats of violence."
Trump's charge comes after the unrelated December conviction of the Trump Organization for tax fraud in a case that was also brought by Bragg.
The big picture
The indictment is certain to cast a shadow over Trump's 2024 presidential candidacy and opens the door to several possibilities. He may have to run for President while facing a criminal trial if he enters a not-guilty plea and the matter proceeds to trial, which can take several months. However, if he were to win a second term while being sentenced to prison or already serving one, several constitutional problems would arise.
Trump affirmed that his indictment wouldn't preclude him from running for office again. At CPAC in March, when asked if he would still run in 2024 if formally accused, Trump responded, “Oh absolutely. I wouldn’t even think about leaving.”
The former President could also face criminal charges for his alleged attempts to tamper with Georgia's 2020 election results, for taking classified papers from the White House (and thwarting efforts to get them back), and for his alleged participation in the attack on the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
See more: More than 50% of Republicans now support Trump for elections
