Donald Trump, former US president and front-runner to be the Republican nominee for office in 2024, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records as prosecutors accused him of paying two women not to recount their sexual encounters with him.
The indictment, unsealed following a court appearance, alleges that Trump and others violated election laws through a scheme to suppress the publication of negative information about him before the 2016 election. The two women were the movie actress for adults Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Dressed in a dark blue suit and red tie, Trump, 76, showed little emotion as he waved to a crowd gathered outside court after being herded in a motorcade from his New York residence at Trump Tower.
Trump sat with his hands folded as he delivered his statement flanked by his lawyers. “Not guilty”, he said when asked how he declared himself.
“We will fight hard against this”, Todd Blanche, Trump’s lawyer, told reporters after the appearance, adding that the former president was frustrated, upset and angry about the charges. “But I’ll tell you one thing: he’s motivated. And that’s not going to stop him”.
The judge set the next court hearing for December 4 and did not issue a gag order for either party.
Some of the evidence against Trump was captured on audio recording in September 2016 as he and his lawyer discussed how to suppress stories about their affair, prosecutors said. Court documents said the Republican can be heard saying: “So how much do we have to pay for this?”.
Trump’s refund checks to a lawyer for the payments were falsely presented showing the money was for a “retainer agreement,” prosecutors said. The charges accuse Trump of falsifying the books of his real estate company with the intent to defraud.
Trump, the front-runner for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, said nothing as he entered the courtroom and left about an hour later. The billionaire had previously called the allegations politically motivated.
Taken together, the charges carry a maximum penalty of more than 100 years in prison under New York law, but an actual prison term if convicted at trial would almost certainly be much less than that.
In New York, forgery of business documents is a misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in prison, but is elevated to a felony punishable by up to four years in prison when done in furtherance or concealment of another crime.
Trump was indicted last week, becoming the first president, retired or serving, to face criminal charges yet in a case involving a 2016 hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels.
From his motorcade, before arriving at court, Trump posted on social media: “I’m headed to Lower Manhattan, to the Courthouse. It looks so SURREAL – WOW, I’m going to be ARRESTED. I can’t believe this is happening in America.”
In other social media posts ahead of the appearance, Trump renewed his attacks on Merchan, who last year presided over a trial in which the Republican’s real estate company was convicted of tax fraud.
Trump, who was president between 2017 and 2021, announced in November his candidacy to return to the White House in 2024 in an attempt to deny a second term to Democrat Joe Biden, who defeated him in 2020.
Agitation
Hundreds of Trump supporters, in a park across from the Manhattan courthouse, cheered and blew whistles. His critics held up signs, including one of Trump in a striped jail uniform behind bars and another that read: “lock him up”.
Any trial is at least more than a year away, legal experts said. Being charged or even convicted does not legally bar Trump from running for president.
The White House did not rule on what was happening in New York.
“I think the American people should rest assured that when there’s a case going on like this, we don’t comment”, declared to the press the spokeswoman of the White House, Karine Jean-Pierre.
Manhattan District Attorney Bragg is scheduled to give a press conference after the arraignment. Trump and his allies have portrayed the case as politically motivated.
In a social media post, Trump called Manhattan Criminal Court a “very unfair place” and urged that the case be moved to the New York borough of Staten Island, which typically votes Republican. It was not clear if his lawyers would ask the court for a change of venue.
Trump will return to Florida and deliver a speech from his Mar-a-Lago resort at 8:15 p.m. Tuesday (0015 GMT Wednesday), his office said.
Trump’s lead has widened over his rivals in the race for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Monday, conducted after news broke that he would face criminal charges.
About 48% of Republicans say they want Trump to be their party’s presidential nominee, up from 44% last month. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, in second place, fell from 30% to around 19%.
More than two-thirds of those polled said they believed Trump paid hush money to Daniels, but half said they believe the allegations are politically motivated.
Source: Reuters
Source: Gestion
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