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(CNN) The indictment of former President Donald Trump by a New York grand jury has pushed the country into uncharted political, legal and historical waters, raising many questions about how criminal cases will play out.
The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating Trump in connection with his alleged role in a hush-money payment scheme and cover-up involving adult film star Stormy Daniels dating back to the 2016 presidential election.
The sealed indictment has not yet been released, but Trump and his allies have already torn Bragg and the grand jury’s decision, denouncing it as “the highest level of political persecution and election interference in history.” ”
Here’s what we know about Trump’s indictment so far.
What is the indictment?
Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud in the indictment, CNN reports. It remains sealed.
The former president is scheduled to be indicted in Manhattan criminal court next Tuesday around 2:15 p.m., two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
The investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office began while Trump was still in the White House, and Trump’s then-personal attorney Michael Cohen went to Daniels in late October 2016, days before the 2016 presidential election. It relates to a payment of $130,000. 10 years ago, she publicly accused Trump of having an affair. Mr Trump has denied the allegations.
What allegations may be involved?
The investigation covered payments to Daniels and Trump Organization reimbursements to Cohen.
According to court filings when Cohen faced federal criminal charges, Trump Org. I agreed to pay him. The company recorded the reimbursement as a legal expense in its internal books. Trump denied knowledge of the payment.
It is not illegal to pay hush money. Prior to the indictment, prosecutors were considering whether to indict Trump for falsifying the Trump Organization’s business records for how it reflected a refund of a payment to Cohen. is a misdemeanor in New York.
Prosecutors will also decide whether to charge Trump with first-degree falsification of business records for falsifying records with the intent to commit another crime or for falsifying records with the intent to facilitate or cover up another crime. I was considering. In this case, you may be violating campaign finance laws. This is a class E felony and carries a minimum sentence of one year and a maximum sentence of four years. To prove the facts, prosecutors would have to show that Trump intended to commit the crime.
New Yorkers against Donald J. Trump
The judge overseeing the case against Trump on Thursday approved an order granting Bragg’s request to release the sealed grand jury indictment.
At the top of the order is the case name: People of New York against Donald J. Trump.
According to the document, Judge Juan Merchan ordered that the disclosure was “in the public interest and in the proper exercise of the court’s discretion.”
How did Trump respond?
Trump was caught off guard by the grand jury’s decision to indict him, according to a person who has spoken directly to Trump. Or I began to believe the news reports that it was farther down the road.
The former president has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in the matter and continued his attacks on Bragg and other Democrats in the wake of news of the indictments.
“We believe this witch hunt will backfire massively on Joe Biden,” the former president said in a statement Thursday. “The American people know exactly what the Radical Left Democrats are doing here. Everyone can see it. First we will beat Alvin Bragg, then we will beat Joe Biden, and we are going to banish every single one of these crooked Democrats so we can make America great again!”
What’s next for Trump?
He was first asked to surrender in New York on Friday, according to his attorney.
As for the former president’s first court appearance, in some ways he looks like the other defendants, and in other ways he looks very different.
First appearances are usually public proceedings. Arrangements will be made with the defendant or his/her attorney to voluntarily hand over the defendant to law enforcement if it is not necessary to arrest the defendant. Defendants are usually booked and fingerprinted at their first court appearance. And it is expected that a petition will be submitted in the case of arraignment or denial of the first court appearance.
Trump has to go through certain processes that other defendants must go through when indictments are brought against him. Rather, it would inject additional security and practical concerns about the next steps in his case.
Is this a special situation?
yes. It is the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
That alone makes it historic. But Trump is now months away from his third run in the White House, and his criminal case will shake his 2024 presidential campaign to a new level.
What does this mean for him politically?
This is one of the many big questions here. So far, many congressional Republicans have rallied in Trump’s defense, attacking Bragg on Twitter and accusing the district attorney of conducting a political witch hunt.
House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio), one of the Republican committee chairs, tweeted that it was “outrageous” and demanded that Bragg testify before Congress about the Trump investigation.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz called the indictment “completely unprecedented” and said it was a “devastating escalation in the weaponization of the justice system.”
As part of their response to the indictment, Trump and his team have attacked Democrats, investigations and Bragg in various forms of media as they work to shape the public narrative, according to sources close to Trump. We are starting to expand our agent.
Can Trump run for president after being indicted?
yes.
This story has been updated with additional information.
CNN’s Kara Scannell, John Miller, Jeremy Herb, Kristen Holmes, Tierney Sneed, Z. Byron Wolf, Holmes Lybrand, Hannah Rabinowitz, and Lauren del Valle contributed to this report.
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