Trump is being arraigned – here’s what that means and what happens next
Trump’s lawyers have said the former president “did not commit any crime. We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in court.” Picture: AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, File
Former US President Donald Trump is set to appear in a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday on charges related to falsifying business records in a hush-money investigation, the first president ever to be charged with a crime.
Trump, who has denied any wrongdoing and has repeatedly assailed the investigation, has called the indictment “political persecution” and predicted it would damage Democrats in 2024.
Trump’s lawyers have said the former president “did not commit any crime. We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in court.”
Here is what to expect today.
Trump flew into New York from his Mar-a-Lago estate on Monday and is expected to leave Trump Tower on Tuesday and make the nearly four-mile drive to the Manhattan criminal courthouse, where he is scheduled to face a judge for his arraignment at 2.15pm US time (7.15pm Irish time).
Trump is facing multiple charges of falsifying business records, including at least one felony offense, according to two people who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss information that is not yet public.
Under the law, prosecutors must prove there was an “intent to defraud.” The felony falsifying business records offense requires prosecutors to prove that the records were falsified with the intention of committing, aiding or concealing a second crime.
It is not clear yet what prosecutors allege the second crime to be, but experts have said it is probably some kind of campaign finance violation.
No. So-called perp walks happen when a criminal suspect is taken in handcuffs out of a police precinct and then driven to the courthouse. But Trump won’t be going to a police precinct.
He has arranged a surrender with the district attorney’s office and will head straight to the court, skipping a police station entirely.
It is very unlikely anyone will get a glimpse of him going into court, unless he wants to be seen.
That is because there are underground entrances, side doors and tunnels in and around the Manhattan courthouse.
Trump will get booked. Here is what that means: Before computers, information on every criminal suspect would be written down in a big book kept by court officials.
Now, it is all computerized, but the process is largely the same. Court officers will take down Trump’s full name, age, birthdate, height and weight.
They will check to see if the former president has any outstanding warrants. They will take his fingerprints — but they won’t roll his fingertips in ink; these days that’s done by computer, too.
Officers will roll each fingertip on a computerized system that records the prints. They may take his photo, known as a mug shot.
In New York, this process usually takes about two hours, but can be as long as four. Then he goes before a judge.
An arraignment is a hearing in which the indictment will be formally unsealed and the charges will be read aloud, though Trump could request to wave the public reading.
He will be asked how he pleads to the charges and he will answer “guilty” or “not guilty.”
Trump’s attorneys Joe Tacopina, Susan Necheles and Todd Blanche will work with the judge and the district attorney’s office to set a date for the next time he would be back in court.
The judge has ruled that news photographers would be allowed to take photos of the former president at the start of his arraignment.
Technically, yes. When he is fingerprinted and processed, he is considered under arrest and in custody. But it won’t look like what it does in the movies or on TV’s .
He will not be handcuffed and he will not sit in a jail cell, in part because parts of the courthouse will be cleared out for his arraignment — and because Trump is a former president with Secret Service protection.
Not all defendants are handcuffed before they appear before a judge for an arraignment, though some are.
It depends. In New York City, mug shots are not generally made public. They are taken by the law enforcement agency that makes the arrest.
There are situations where a judge could make the photo public in response to a public records fight. It could also get leaked, too.
Court officials are trying to limit what business is happening at the courthouse at 100 Centre St. in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday.
Police are expected to close some streets around the plaza and security will be tight.
The New York Police Department is in charge of security in the city, but state court officers are in charge of security inside the court.
In all likelihood, yes. New York’s bail laws have been overhauled over the past few years, meaning Trump would be released without bail because the anticipated charges against him do not require that bail be set.
But it is possible that Judge Juan Merchan could decide that Trump is a flight risk and order him held in custody, with or without bail.
Trump’s lawyers would argue that the former president’s ties to the US are strong, and because he is a presidential candidate, he has no reason to flee and should be allowed to leave.
The judge and legal teams will set dates for the next hearing and deadlines for discovery, in which the district attorney’s office must turn over all its information to Trump’s lawyers, and motions, which include any requests to shift the venue or dismiss the case outright. That process usually takes months.
Tacopina has said he needs to read the indictment first and research before he decides what to do on a change of venue or any motions to dismiss, though it would be very common to file one.
The New York case is just one of many legal woes Trump is facing.
The Justice Department is also investigating his retention of top secret government documents at his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, after leaving the White House.
Federal investigators are also still probing the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol and efforts to overturn the 2020 election that Trump falsely claimed was stolen.
In Georgia, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has been investigating whether Trump and his allies illegally meddled in the 2020 election.
The foreperson of a special grand jury, which heard from dozens of witnesses, said last month that the panel had recommended that numerous people be indicted, and hinted Trump could be among them.
It is ultimately up to Willis to decide whether to move forward.
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