Donald Trump pleads not guilty to 34 charges in New York
A stone-faced Mr Trump entered the courtroom shortly before 2.30pm local time without saying anything.
Donald Trump conspired to illegally influence the 2016 election through a series of hush money payments designed to stifle claims that could be harmful to his candidacy, prosecutors said in unsealing a historic 34-count felony indictment against the former US president.
The payments, said Assistant District Attorney Christopher Conroy, were part of “an unlawful plan to identify and suppress negative information that could have undermined his campaign for president”.
Mr Trump, stony-faced and silent as he entered and exited the Manhattan courtroom, said “not guilty” in a firm voice while facing a judge who warned him to refrain from rhetoric that could inflame or cause civil unrest.
The next court date is December 4, though it is not clear if he will be required to appear.
The broad contours of the case have long been known, but the indictment contains new details about a scheme that prosecutors say involved multiple pay-offs to two women, including a porn actor, who said they had extramarital sexual encounters with him years earlier, as well as to a Trump Tower doorman who claimed to have a story about a child he alleged the former president had out of wedlock.
The arraignment, though procedural in nature, amounts to a remarkable reckoning for Mr Trump after years of investigations into his personal, business and political dealings.
Any alleged offence punishable by more than one year in prison is called a felony in the US justice system.
Taken together, the charges carry a maximum sentence of more than 100 years in prison under New York law but an actual prison sentence if he is convicted at a trial would almost certainly be far less than that.
Wearing his signature dark suit and red tie, Mr Trump turned and waved to crowds outside the building before heading inside to be fingerprinted and processed — a remarkable reckoning after years of investigations into his personal, business and political dealings and an extraordinary moment in US history.
A stone-faced Mr Trump entered the courtroom shortly before 2.30pm local time without saying anything.
He arrived at court in an eight-car motorcade that took him from Trump Tower in Midtown Manhattan through the main north-south road on the east side of the city, past landmarks such as the United Nations.
Afterwards, Trump lawyer Todd Blanche told reporters that it was a “sad day for the country”.
“You don’t expect this to happen to somebody who was president of the United States,” he said.
Mr Trump has been warned by the judge to refrain from social media posts that could stir up unrest following messages critical of the prosecutor in the case against him.
This follows earlier posts from the ex-president saying: “Heading to Lower Manhattan, the Courthouse. Seems so SURREAL — WOW, they are going to ARREST ME. Can’t believe this is happening in America. MAGA!”Â
Mr Trump, who was impeached twice by the US House but was never convicted in the US Senate, is the first former president to face criminal charges.
Mr Trump is scheduled to return to his Palm Beach, Florida, home, Mar-a-Lago, on Tuesday evening to give remarks. At least 500 prominent supporters have been invited, with some of the most pro-Trump congressional Republicans expected to attend.
A conviction would not prevent Trump from running for or winning the presidency in 2024.
The investigation is scrutinising six-figure payments made to porn actor Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Both say they had sexual encounters with the married Mr Trump years before he got into politics.
Mr Trump denies having sexual liaisons with either woman and has denied any wrongdoing involving payments.
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