Topline
Former President Donald Trump reportedly entered a plea of not guilty in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, in the first criminal prosecution of a former president in U.S. history.
Former President Donald Trump sits at the defense table with his legal team in a Manhattan court, … [+] Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in New York. Trump is appearing in court on charges related to falsifying business records in a hush money investigation, the first president ever to be charged with a crime. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, Pool)
Key Facts
Trump entered the plea himself around 2:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday before Manhattan criminal court Judge Juan Merchan, multiple outlets reported.
Felony falsifying business records charges carry a maximum sentence of up to four years in state prison, though a law enforcement expert told Yahoo News—which was the first to report the scope of the charges—that first-time offenders are rarely given prison time.
Trump surrendered at Manhattan criminal court just after 1 p.m. on Tuesday, and called his imminent arrest a “surreal” moment in a Truth Social post just before entering the courthouse.
Trump, who did not speak to reporters before or after his approximately hour-long hearing, looked somber and angry as he sat between his attorneys Susan Necheles and Joe Tacopina inside the courtroom.
In addition to Tacopina and Necheles, Trump was flanked by attorney Todd Blanche, legal advisor Boris Ephsteyn, advisor Jason Miller and aide Walt Nauta at the courthouse, The New York Times reported.
Trump was formally arrested, fingerprinted and held in an office off the courtroom before entering his plea, though he did not have his mug shot taken, The New York Times reported (experts speculated prior to his arrest that a mug shot may not be necessary, given that Trump’s appearance is widely known).
Prior to the indictment being unsealed, NBC reported that the charges included conspiracy, but the unsealed indictment shows each of the 34 felony counts were for falsifying business records.
Tangent
Trump spent the night at his apartment in Trump Tower after flying from Mar-A-Lago to New York on Monday. Pro- and anti-Trump protesters gathered alongside a throng of reporters outside the courthouse on Tuesday morning. GOP Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Ga.) and George Santos (N.Y.) also made brief appearances at the demonstrations (which appeared to be largely peaceful), but were quickly drowned out by counter-protesters.
Key Background
Trump faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, according to the unsealed indictment. The charges are tied to a deal his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen made with Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence about their alleged affair in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election. Prosecutors were widely expected to be considering charges of falsifying business records, after federal prosecutors determined in a separate 2018 case against Cohen that the Trump Organization reimbursed Cohen for the payments to Daniels and falsely specified that the services were for legal purposes. Trump has denied the alleged affair and his attorneys have claimed Daniels extorted him for the $130,000 payment.
Surprising Fact
Merchan ruled on Monday that cameras would not be allowed in the courtroom, denying a request from a coalition of media organizations who asked him to bend state laws prohibiting cameras, citing the unprecedented level of public interest in the case. Trump’s legal team was against having cameras in court, arguing they would make a “spectacle,” his lawyer Joe Tacopina said.
What To Watch For
The Manhattan District Attorney’s office will hold a press conference at 3:30 p.m. to discuss the charges. Trump will deliver a speech at Mar-A-Lago at 8:15 p.m.
Further Reading
Trump Surrenders At Manhattan Criminal Courthouse—And Calls Arrest ‘Surreal’ Moment (Forbes)
Why Trump May Not Get A Mugshot—And When We Might See It If He Does (Forbes)
Trump Faces 34 Felony Counts For Falsifying Records, Report Says (Forbes)
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Sara Dorn